Talk:Magnetization reversal

(major contributor also authored a cited reference)

strange that c.d. stanciu's phd thesis is cited in this stub. oh wait, the only person to work on this page has the handle "cdstanciu." not very surprising. wikipedia should be used as a repository for collective knowledge, not some vehicle for someone to promote his / her graduate work.

Dear writer, I hope that as a Wikipedia contributor you can actually contribute to the knowledge base and not simply use this space to add nonconstructive comments (cdstanciu). — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.98.83.246 (talk) 21:35, 11 June 2012 (UTC)

Magnetization reversal of a ship's compasses

“ Thrusting his head half way into the binnacle, Ahab caught one glimpse of the compasses; his uplifted arm slowly fell; for a moment he almost seemed to stagger. Standing behind him Starbuck looked, and lo! the two compasses pointed East, and the Pequod was as infallibly going West.

But ere the first wild alarm could get out abroad among the crew, the old man with a rigid laugh exclaimed, "I have it! It has happened before. Mr. Starbuck, last night's thunder turned our compasses—that's all. Thou hast before now heard of such a thing, I take it."

"Aye; but never before has it happened to me, sir," said the pale mate, gloomily.

Here, it must needs be said, that accidents like this have in more than one case occurred to ships in violent storms. The magnetic energy, as developed in the mariner's needle, is, as all know, essentially one with the electricity beheld in heaven; hence it is not to be much marvelled at, that such things should be. Instances where the lightning has actually struck the vessel, so as to smite down some of the spars and rigging, the effect upon the needle has at times been still more fatal; all its loadstone virtue being annihilated, so that the before magnetic steel was of no more use than an old wife's knitting needle. But in either case, the needle never again, of itself, recovers the original virtue thus marred or lost; and if the binnacle compasses be affected, the same fate reaches all the others that may be in the ship; even were the lowermost one inserted into the kelson.

”

—Herman Melville: Moby Dick. 1851.CHAPTER 124: The Needle. (continued)

—Pawyilee (talk) 10:53, 31 May 2014 (UTC)

Redirection impending

As this was a stub, I have added its content (with some small but not "minor" changes) to Magnetization#Reversal. I will replace content with a redirect unless someone can see a reason to not do so. If so, then change that new section accordingly. JamesEG (talk) 08:49, 13 May 2015 (UTC)