Randomly Oscillating Magnetic Pendulum (R.O.M.P.)

The pendulum will be used to demonstrate chaos. It works well---so far the best configuration seems to be : one magnet in center which repeals pendulum and two attractor magnets (equally spaced) on either side of pole and two more to create a square pattern. Using the pole to establish initial conditions, shows greatly different paths for similar initial conditions.

Negative: 1. Arm that the moving magnet is suspended on is directly in the way of initiating a starting circle. This level of design flaw is dumbfounding for a science oriented device.2. Polyethylene type material the magnet is suspended on is bent in packing and will not straighten without heating.Positive:Quality of base is good as are the magnets and the target circles.Until arm design is resolved, it is not reasonably functional at any price.

My 4 year old twin grand children love moving the magnets and watching the resulting pendulum motion. They will no doubt have an intuitive understanding of chaos theory.

Love this pendulum! I have one previously, they have improved the materials so it is more durable. Endless possibilities are possible by simply re-arranging the magnets on the base. Very clever, everyone who comes into my office needs to play with it.

My 9 yr old grandson has been playing with it all day so it must be fascinating.

Prompt delivery, good product.

Love this strange attractor pendulum and a lot people at my work do too.

You will not believe what this does. By placing the small magnetic disks on the plate, you create a seemingly random pattern of the pendulum swing. I started with just four disks and a gentle push of the pendulum. It started to swing as you might expect of any weight on a string, but then it moves in some unexpected direction as if controlled by a ghostly force (which, I guess, in some ways magnetism is).I kept this on the top of my filing cabinet at work, and anytime someone opened a drawer, the pendulum would swing and do its little show.While this a lot of fun, please note that the small magnetics could be swallowed by children. If you want a child involved, make sure that it is with your supervision.Actually, this is a lot more fun for adults. If you put it on your desk at work, you may get no work done.