Japan’s Electromagnetic Trains Cause Paperclips To Dance

so... don't set your laptop on the ground, gotcha

OW OW OW!!! There goes my defibrillator again!

NurseDave

"It seems you are trying to ride a train.

Would you like help?

- Get help with riding the train
- Just ride the train without help

Don't show me this tip again"

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

@OMG! Ponies!: Just wait 'till one of them comes at you asking if you need tips to write a letter...

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

@Scazza: 22 days I've been in Japan only got the train packed once, during the morning rush hour.
Those 22 days were spent happily in Tokyo, and I could also debunk several other stereotypes we have about them...

Bokusatsu_Tenshi

That can't be good for your health.

Forget the paperclips. Did you see how clean their public transit is?

CaliforniaKid

Better not drop your wallet on the floor... the strip will get demagnetized.

dcartist

@martini1992:

The camera that's recording it seems to be fine. I actually touched my phone and a super magnet with 400lb of pulling force together. My phone was fine. That magnet could mess up a CRT from 6 feet away.

monkey314159

I've been doing this on the Metro in DC since the 80's, but I'd make various shapes that move around and stuff.

pugfantus

So that's where N'sync got their coreography

AXSLV2

@Yinzers Are Celebrating the Stanley Cup: Oh is that the what theyre calling the excuse to put that creepy Jobs' pic up on top? A theme week?

/hrmmph

@Scazza: Nope. The stereotypical packed card are rush hour on some busy line. This looks like it's at night, and furthermore the station announcement in the background says it's the end of the line, so less people for that reason too.

@Noobs-R-Us:I don't think that would count as an "electronic device"

@bosskev: You couldn't be less correct. About trains.

Subways are filthy, I'll give you that.

MikeyMike01

@bosskev: Never been to England eh?

Better not leave your electronic device on the floor, might find you have some corrupted data..

Kakkoister

"The only thing that happens to paper clips when they're placed on American trains is that they get fed up and decide to just drive next time. Hiyo!"

You know, if vacation weren't so damn scarce I'd ride the train a hell of a lot more often. Hell, for our honeymoon my wife and I rode the Empire Builder from Chicago to Seattle in winter. Glacier National Park was beautiful as was Stevens Pass.

The food was good, meeting people at dinner/lunch was fun. I enjoyed the entire trip other than being sick with the plague (Flu) before I climbed aboard.

@OMG! Ponies!: Maybe to compete you should teach the rats to dance.

Xeno

@Bandit: I was thinking more along the lines of the grimy trains and subways in the U.S. where you are thankful you are wearing thick-soled shoes. Indeed, there's no doubt in my mind that public spaces are cleaner and more respected in just about any other country.

@Bandit: +1

williamn

@bosskev: Actually, if you've ever been to Japan, you'd know that the floors are so clean you could eat off them. Really.

Amazing how clear that train is. I guess the streotypical packed cars dosn't happen all the time.

office supplies SCHWINGGGG!

Missing in Vlissingen

Why do I feel the need to say "AWWWWWWW"??

@martini1992: Did Giz bring you here from 1979 in honor of the theme week?

I wonder how hard drives fare after continuous long trips.

they do this on the DC metro, too. we did it in school as some sort of experiment once. Has to be in specific parts of the car...

ru486

"Passengers with pacemakers are recommended to not to lie on the floor of our trains. Passengers without pacemakers shouldn't be down there either."

@martini1992: Are you from the past?

As a regular El-rider in Chicago, I wasn't as impressed with the the paperclips as I was with how clean the floors were on the train. Commenting is still 95% broken, BTW.

@martini1992: I'm pretty sure most pacemakers are harmed by what looks like about as strong an effect as a refridgerator magnet. Certainly on the underside of the train it would be a far stronger field, but inside the compartment I suspect you'd be fine. And if you're riding on the underside of a bullet train I think you might have larger problems than the your hearing aid going screechy on occasion...

icelight

So, don't drop your ATM card on the floor!

NicleT

@TheSonOfKrypton: THANKS, electromagnetism.

@Itspeat!: Because if there's anything the Japanese are known for, it's their complete disregard for the welfare of their aging population in favor of a more perfect utopian society.

They should have bent those paper clips into little stick-figures.

@l4crosse: he's wearing steel toe boots

Weihovah

@calyth: It's barely enough to lift up a paperclip, so I doubt it'll affect a camcorder. Plus, there's likely some metal shielding to protect from random electromagnetic waves.

Gotta love electromagnetic induction.

@martini1992: What the fuck is a floppy disk?

nukee

@bosskev:
Garbage and shit = ipods and itouches?

nerve11

In my travels to the next Japanese swingers party... I guess I'll leave my little guys ring at home.

evo190

I guess I’d better not wear my $45,000 Patek Philippe then?

Noobs-R-Us

... I bet he missed his stop about five times being so entertained by this. Oooo, look, shiny! *^_^*

@martini1992: it's not the 90s anymore!

@Xeno: No, don't be fooled.. You still should

i wonder if that can mess with pacemakers and other things that our lives could possibly depend on!

I think this is all a part of their evil plan to kill off the imperfect people.

@Xeno: Well, yes, but not because of magnetism.
The floor of a typical train is so covered in garbage and shit you'd never be able to distinguish your Zune.
;^)

Big deal. We've got pigeons that ride the A out in Howard Beach and we still have the biggest rats of any mass transit system.

Keep your dancing paper clips, Japan.

I wonder more about how this guy recorded the video without the magnetic field damaging the camera or the media that he may be using.

calyth

but apparently, video cameras are unaffected.

Shikestarr

@martini1992: "... a floppy disk or cassette tape either."

Um...say what?

I wonder would this work on Post-it notes or just old time office supplies?

I_have_something_to_say

So I shouldn't be putting my Zune 120 on the floor of the train?

Xeno

Uh-oh...Microsoft's dead Clippy is assembling a dancing zombie army!

@willyolio: We have Amtrack too, but there will be no paperclips on the floor because anyone traveling on business would never count on a train getting them there on time.

I searched that video over, and I saw no "and dance"

They'll have troubles with all the Gundam roboters over there. But than again I would like to see "dancing" Gundams :).

Eschekt

I like how the person in the back's legs do the same thing. Would this field mess with your gizmos though?

l4crosse

Id hate to ride on one of those with a weak pacemaker or dodgy hearing aid... thinking about it I wouldn't like to have a floppy disk of cassette tape either.

see, in the states, you just have some subways. and the paperclips will never dance because they are stuck to the floor with layers of bubble gum, spit, vomit, and mystery fluids.

willyolio

They "say" it doesn't affect the human body, but did anyone else notice the guy's legs in the 2nd car move at the same time the paperclips move?

AthenaAmphisbaena