Magnets for Dummies

a generator uses magnets to create electricity

If we had to characterize our DotD nominees in one word, that would probably be "greedy." They aren't necessarily stupid people (although some certainly are), they're just people who let dollar signs get in the way of common sense. As a result, several of them have managed to collect awards for writing on multiple platforms; and those are just the ones who use the same name at eHow.com and HubPages.com, for instance. Today's awardee is one such money-grubber, whom we first discovered at the now-defunct Suite.com and have since found in the eHow family. She's Angela Schnaubelt, seen here demonstrating her ignorance of the "Importance of Magnets" at Sciencing.com.

Schnaubelt, perhaps because she avoided science classes while getting a BA in French, appeared to believe that a magnet's most important function is to hold expired coupons to the fridge:

"Magnets are useful, fun and even a little mysterious--they can repel as well as attract..."

..and although she did mention that "Magnets are essential in today's electronic technology," she had nothing to say about why magnets are essential to technology. Instead, Angela devoted 38 words to the history of the study of magnetism, 48 words to types of magnets, and 66 words to the use of magnets before finishing with 37 words of "fun facts." Schnaubelt devoted the most copy -- 80 words -- to something she called "Famous Ties": that's where you learn that

"[Edmund] Halley tried to map Earth's magnetic fields to help the British Navy." Along the way she erroneously claimed that "Scientists believe migratory birds use Earth's magnetic fields to guide their flights on long journeys..." ...a "fun fact" that's long outdated: scientists now suspect that quantum entanglement is involved. However, her most startling revelation was,

"Some uses for magnets, either utilized in manufacturing or daily usage, include refrigerator magnets, pain relief, name-tag magnets, button or snap replacements, key chain magnet, dart boards and other games, wrecking cranes in scrap yards, compasses and media forms such as cassette tapes, CDs, computer chips and computer motherboards."

Yup: our nominee appears to have equated the importance of computers with that of name-tag magnets and dart boards, not to mention that she apparently considered computer motherboards somehow distinct from computer chips. Sigh...

Schnaubelt completely ignored magnetism and magnetic fields, which are essential to the generation of electricity and operation of electric motors. Such a glaring omission speaks to the scientific illiteracy of this liberal arts graduate, who should not have been allowed to graduate from high school -- much less college -- without at least a rudimentary understanding of a physics principle that is essential to modern technology. Dumbass. Dumbass of the Day, in fact... again.

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