Mjölnir's Secret: Microwave Oven Magnets - Who Knew? Videos for
Engineers
The secret of Mjölnir,
Thor's hammer, has finally been revealed. As it turns out, being found 'worthy'
of lifting Mjölnir requires having the right thumbprint. Well, at least inventor / maker Allen Pan's
version of the hammer does. The July/August issue of
Popular
Science ran an article on Pan's cleverly converted toy Mjölnir wherein he buried four lead-acid
batteries to power a scrounged microwave oven transformer for duty as an electromagnet. An
Arduino Uno-driven sensor detects Pan's unique thumbprint and disables the electromagnet
to allow him alone to lift the hammer from its perch atop a metal base - such as a manhole cover or
steel construction plate.
The video below shows the reactions of people on the street who are utterly unable to budge the hammer
while Allen walks up to it and effortlessly lifts his Mjölnir. As always, I am amazed by yet another
example of a world full of creative, inventive people like Allen Pan.
Agent Smith Sells GE Medical
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This archive links to the many video and audio
files that have been featured on RF Cafe.