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Human Eye Protein Senses Earth's Magnetism
chrb pointed out a story at BBC News about the discovery of a light-sensitive protein in the human eye that acts like a "compass" in a magnetic field. The molecule at the center of the study is called cryptochrome and is found in every animal on Earth. If removed from the eyes of flies, the flies lost the ability to respond to a magnetic field. From the article: "Despite much controversy, no conclusive evidence exists that humans can sense the Earth's magnetic field, and the find may revive interest in the idea. Although humans, like migratory birds, are known to have cryptochrome in their eyes, the idea of human magnetoreception has remained largely unexplored since pioneering experiments by Robin Baker of the University of Manchester in the 1980s."
Damn it. I read "cryptochrome" and now I have the song Kodachrome running through my head...
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
It turns out that breasts contain high concentrations of magnetic material.
It has a faint tinge of purple, like when you put a magnet up to an old CRT and screw up the ion gun.
Bill Clinton: Pimp we can believe in. - The Shirt!!!
If our 'magnetic sense' were something clearly perceived, simply holding a rare-earth magnet against your closed eye should be a weird, disorienting experience. It doesn't seem to be.
That's because you can't sense a single magnet, the poles are too close together. You have to use two of those hard drive magnets, one on each side of the eye to notice it.
(Warning: Don't put strong magnets around remaining eye)
Knowledge Brings Fear