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I think I read in the new scientist that monopoles had been discovered but I guess it may just be something analogous to it, does anyone know more?
If someone does discover a simple magnetic monopole then modern physics is in a bit of a quandary - maxwell's equations are based on the fact that you cannot have one. to be precise it is gauss' un-named law, normally shown as maxwell's second equation, that shows there can be no magnetic monopoles. formally, it says that the closed surface integral of the mag field over an area vector must be zero; the net magnetic flux through any surface must be zero, ie as many magnetic field lines enter as exit and no magnetic "charge" can accrue. and if maxwell were shown to be so fundamentally wrong... well there would be a boom in the text book industry.Matthew