The Permanent Magnet Conundrum
It's electromagnetics. So the there is no mechanical answer in the same way how a plane flies only has a mechanical answer and can't be explained in electrical terms.
Actually, I've sort of become convinced, over the years, that
everything (including, possibly nothing) is electical (and, possibly gravitational) and has an electrical explanation.
Some materials have very small, infintesmal "ferromagnetic domains" which are like "little magnets" scattered throughout the substance. SUch as iron, nickel, etc. These domains are normally all pointed in random directons and the combined magnetic field of each doman cancels out so you normally have no magnetic attraction. When placed in a magnetic field these domains realign and produce a net magnetic field becoming a magnet itself. If this external field is removed the domains pop back into their random alignment.
Okay, I don't have a problem with that or the next part about,
locking the magnetic comains in place to form permanent magnets. I guess the (problem, confusion, wonderment, angst, et.) relates to the current vs. magnetic domains.
Are you talking about electrons orbiting a nucleus? I'm going to go on a limb and say the sum of the orbiting is RANDOM thus cancelling out any magnetic field. Electrical current is not from electrons orbiting a nucleus but from them moving amongst atoms.
There obviously is an interaction between the magnetic domains and the electrons of the atoms in a conductor. I guess I tend to think of it as the moving magnetic field sweeping electrons in the conductor toward one end, making it the negative terminal. But, does it automatically make sense that the magnetic field must be changing for that to happen?
If it were not for permanent magnets, I'd say, "sure, why not". The magnetic field is created as a result of the interaction of the current with the atoms and one effect creates the other. Like blowing one fan into another to make it spin. In the electrical circuit there are losses so, no fear of creating a "
Flubber" effect.
The permanent magnet is the conundruim. If the magnet is there and the electrons in a conductor are under the influence of it's field, why aren't electrons pushed to one end of the wire...even if the field is static? You can easily say, because there's no force being applied to do the sweeping.
But, if two magnets are brought to close proximity, their magnetic fields do indeed interact to either attract or repel the magnets. There is a force even in the absence of movement. So, I guess maybe the right question is whether there is a completely different branch of physics in play depending on whether you are dealing with magnetic fields as they relate to electric currents as opposed to dealing with permanent magnets (or magnets during the time they exist because of the effects created by current flow)?
I mentioned the perpetual motion aspects so, certainly I'm not the first person to notice these things and question just what the heck is going on. There seems to be a "force" or "energy" associated with magnets that defies conventional physics but, it's just as obvious that there
is a physics to it (although sometimes it looks downright spooky...like the levitating superconducting magnet we've all seen pictures of).
I also realize that we're dealing with pretty much a different universe when we get down to the atomic level and that maybe you are right that there is no
Newtonian Macro Explanation possible to explain magnetic effects. Frankly, I'm still suspicious that gyroscopes are "real". It's just not possible that simply making something spin will stabilize it, right?