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Cool! The designer ( http://zelfkoelman.com/ ) is Dutch, and the name is actually a pun in Dutch. The word 'Ferrolic' is pronounced almost the same as the Dutch word 'vrolijk', which means 'happy' or 'joyful'.
How are they creating a magnetic field that writes out the time? Is it a large grid of magnets or something more clever?
"In the front, the display has a basin comparable to an acquarium in which Ferro Fluid can move freely. Behind the scenes powerful electromagnets enable Ferollic to influence the fluid’s shape, to pick it up and move it around. Both modules, the basin and the electronics, sit secure in an aluminium frame."
It reminds me of the game World of Goo - those uncanny black blobs floating around. As the site says, the device can only withstand a few months of sustained use - which is a pity.
EDIT: Thanks, jpatokal, that cleared things up.
It reminds me of the game World of Goo - those uncanny black blobs floating around. As the site says, the device can only withstand a few months of sustained use - which is a pity.
I wonder why that is. Given that the container is sealed properly, and they use electronics with magnets, I just don't see any part that is subject to such massive wear. EDIT: Thanks, jpatokal, that cleared things up.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrofluid#Description
As a practical demonstration of this, there's an ancient ferrofluid exhibit (80's?) at a local science museum. While the fluid itself kinda-sorta "works" in that you get the pretty spiky shapes when zapped with an electromagnet, the edges and bottom of the glass case are thickly coated in viscous black gunk.
Seeing this, I just can't stop thinking of why they choose to create an entertaining device and if this fluid has any practical applications.
It reminds me of the game World of Goo - those uncanny black blobs floating around. As the site says, the device can only withstand a few months of sustained use - which is a pity.
I wonder why that is. Given that the container is sealed properly, and they use electronics with magnets, I just don't see any part that is subject to such massive wear. EDIT: Thanks, jpatokal, that cleared things up.