Electromagnets Supplies: metal bolt, nail or screw, wire (can be made out of aluminum foil and tape), battery, paperclips Make a pile of the paperclips. Does the bolt attract any of the paperclips? What does that tell you about the magnetic properties of the bolt? If you do not have wire, make wire out of tinfoil and tape the same way we did in the short circuit lab. You will need about 5 feet of it. Wrap ten coils of the wire around the metal bolt (or nail). Leave a yot of wire on both sides. The next step needs to be done quickly because the wire will heat up (you are creating a short circuit.) Hook both sides of the wire across a battery. Bring the bolt near the pile of paperclips. Note how many paperclips it picks up. Wrap 20 coils of wire around the bolt, hook it up to the battery and bring it near the pile of paperclips. How many paperclips does it pick up now? Wrap 30 coils of wire around the bolt, hook it up to the battery and bring it near the pile of paperclips. How many paperclips does it pick up now? Can you make a relation to the number of coils to the number of paperclips picked up? Wrap at least 10 coils of wire around a pencil. Hook it up to a battery Does the pencil pick up any paperclips? What does that tell you about the magnetic properties of wood versus metal?