MAGNETIC JEWELRY
Durability
Are the magnets really strong enough to stay on?
The incredible strength of these permanent magnets must be seen to be believed. Their force is so strong that under normal use the jewelry will stay on during normal daily activity. However, common sense rules apply; do not wear your jewelry under extreme conditions such as athletic activities.
Will I get stuck to everything metallic that I walk by?
They won't come off under normal use since the magnets are more attracted to each other than any other metal object. When the pieces are open and there are two exposed ends, these ends are very strong and can easily attach to any nearby metal. However when the ends are closed the magnetic field is contained within the magnets themselves and very little residual force exists outside of the piece preventing it from simply coming off near any metallic objects.
How long do the magnets last?
These magnets will never lose their magnetism! They are Permanent Magnets and will never lose their magnetism unless heated over 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Are there any medical benefits to wearing magnetic jewelry?
Magnetic therapy is a form of alternative medicine based on the claim that certain medical disorders can be effectively treated by exposure to magnetic fields. Some believe that magnetic fields emanating from permanent magnets placed close to the body can cause bones to heal faster, relieve pain, and perform other forms of healing to the body. It is most commonly recommended by practitioners as a cure for joint disorders and back problems. However there has been little verifiable proof that magnetism acts any more than a placebo.
One study that has created some intriguing results was done by the Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX. In this double blind study which was performed on Post polio syndrome patients suffering from chronic pain similar to arthritis they found that 76% of patients exposed to static magnetic fields of 300-500 gauss experienced a decrease in pain compared to placebo. No replication of the study has yet been done.
We are confidence that our patented designs will inspire and motivate our customers with endless creativity and individual style. The magnets in the Sisters Mercantile are identical to those sold in medicinal products but we would rather focus on design aesthetics, personal creativity and quality products. Once more conclusive information is available we will pass it on to you our esteemed and valued consumer.

Are there any adverse effects to wearing magnets?
There is very little theoretical reason to suspect that static fields might cause or contribute to any human health problems or cancer and there is very little laboratory or epidemiological evidence for a connection between static fields and human health hazards.
Do static fields decrease fertility, cause birth defects or increase miscarriage rates? There is no consistent evidence for such effects.
CAUTION: These magnets are very strong and as a precaution, should be avoided by people wearing pacemakers. Here are some quotes from Pacemaker manufacturers about the safety of magnets:
"If you mistakenly place a magnet item too close to your pacemaker/ ICD, simply move the item away. Your pacemaker/ICD will immediately return to its previous normal programming. There will be no damage or re-programming effects to your implantable device."
Pregnant Women should ask their Doctors before wearing magnetic jewelry.
What are the guidelines for using items with magnets around the home? As a general rule, maintain a minimum distance of 6 inches/15 centimeters between any household item with magnets and your implantable device. (An industrial work environment may require a further separation than 6 inches/15centimeters). By maintaining a 6 inch/15 centimeter separation, you can use that new gift or household item even when you know it has magnets in it...”
http://www.medtronic.com/rhythms/Education/magnets52.html
What are the magnets made of? What are they coated with?
The composite composition of these magnets is NdFeB with Neodymium, Iron and Boron and coated with the strongest nickel coating you can get for Rare Earth Magnets.
Allergies to nickel
Some people get a red, itchy rash on their skin where they were wearing the jewelry which can be due to irritation and sweat. But often this rash, called "jewelry dermatitis", is the first sign of nickel allergy. If you have these symptoms we recommend buying the black coated magnets and not the silver magnets.
http://allergies.about.com/od/nickel/
Will the jewelry erase the memory on my computer, PDA, or zip disks?
As a good rule of thumb we recommend keeping the jewelry closed (no open ends) and keeping the pieces 3-4 inches from any sensitive materials. In daily wearing with regular use of a computer, cell phone, PDA or computer disks we experienced no adverse effects on any of these devices or recording materials. We do not recommend placing the magnets directly onto any computer, computer screen, PDA, or magnetic recording device. Use at your own risk, we take no responsibility for damage to your possessions.

How does magnetism affect watches?
Magnetism will not affect digital watches unless placed directly on the battery, but magnetism can affect analogue watches, which use a tiny electric motor or spring to turn the hands. Powerful magnetism can affect the performance of this motor/spring.
The good news is that although analogue watches may gain time or lose time under the influence of powerful magnetic fields, they will usually return to normal time-keeping as soon as they leave the source of magnetism.
Will the magnets affect my TV or computer screen?
Magnets can adversely affect the display of TV and computer screens and should not be held near to them. LCD screens will not be affected, but the old CRT screens can.
If you accidentally bring a magnet too close to the screen and it is affected, you should turn it off and restart it after a few seconds. If the irregularities persist, leave the screen off for a longer period of time. Do Not Leave magnets exposed near a screen for a long period of time. Use at your own risk, we take no responsibility for misuse or damage to your possessions.

MAGNETISM
What is Magnetism?
In physics, magnetism is one of the phenomena by which materials exert an attractive or repulsive force on other materials. Some well known materials that exhibit easily detectable magnetic properties are iron, some steels, and the mineral lodestone; however, all materials are influenced to one degree or another by the presence of a magnetic field, although in most cases the influence is too small to detect without special equipment.
When was magnetism discovered?
600 BC - The magnetic properties of natural ferric ferrite stones (lodestones) were described by Greek philosophers
1269 - Petrus Peregrinus de Marincourt, a French Crusader, describes a floating compass and a compass with a pivot point.
1820 The Danish physicist and chemist Hans Christian discovered that when an electric current flows through a wire it causes the compass needle to rotate. This proved that magnetism and electricity were related. Also in 1820 Andre Marie a French physicist worked out the mathematical relationship between the current of electricity and the strength of the magnetic field. He also had a theory that the electric current in atoms had a magnetic field.
1830 - Micheal Faraday an English scientist and Joseph Henery an American physicist discovered that a changing magnetic field produced a current in a coil of wire leading to the discovery of Electro-Magnetism.

How do you make magnets?
To create a magnet you must first change the molecular orientation of the electrons in a given metal. Magnetic fields exist in all materials at the molecular level with electrons acting like very tiny magnets with very weak forces. In a normal material, the electrons point in all directions thus canceling out the forces of other electrons around them but when you add another strong magnetic field (in this case created by the flow of electricity) the electrons align, so all the North poles point in one direction, creating a magnet. In iron, the electrons remain aligned long after the external magnetic field is removed, in some types of iron essentially forever. These are called permanent or “Rare Earth Magnets”.
Why are they called "Rare Earth Magnets"?
Rare Earth Magnets get their name because they are composed of elements that were considered rare when the periodic table was being established. At that time no scientists had yet discovered these missing elements so they were called the "rare earths". Paradoxically it was later discovered that these elements are not rare and they are not earthy, the missing elements were found to be metals. Among them was Neodymium which is a primary element of the magnets used in the Sisters Mercantile Magnetic Jewelry.
Who made the first Rare Earth Magnets?
The introduction of rare earth magnets was a revolutionary event in many industries but the need for more powerful permanent magnets was advanced from research developed by the U.S. Air Force Materials Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in the mid-1960s. Rare earth magnets greatly improved today's high-performance radar which is used in military aircraft and ocean vessels, and in communication satellites and missiles.
What else are Rare Earth Magnets used for?
Rare Earth magnets are an advanced material that has opened up whole new areas for industrial design. It has magnetic properties far beyond those of any other magnetic material, allowing for the reduced size and weight of magnetic assemblies. These magnets are found in all types of modern utilizations such as headphones, speakers, computer hard drives.
What is the magnetic force of these magnets?
Magnetic strength is determined by the gauss, a unit of magnetic induction, equal to 1 Maxwell per square centimeter. The gauss strength is determined by the mass of the magnet and the force of its applied magnetism. Most magnetic clasps are between 2000 to 3000 gauss and each magnetic beads is about 400 gauss.