Our professor asked us this question and I have no idea! Will rate lifesaver for

Question

Our professor asked us this question and I have no idea! Will rate lifesaver for a very well developed answer.

Suppose an alien civilization attempts to invade the Earth, and all the alien troopers are equipped with particle beam weapons: weapons that shoot a stream of high-velocity charged particles (electrons and protons). The hastily-formed Earth Defense Corps pulls recruits from armies all over the world, and issues superstrong bar magnets as a defense against the devastating particle-beam weapons.

The question: suppose you're a trooper in the EDC, and on the battlefield, you see an alien taking aim at you with the particle beam weapon. You pull out your trusty (you hope) bar magnet, and prepare to defend yourself with it. The excitement (or terror?) of battle completely erases all your training from memory ... but you do recall enough of your second-quarter physics course in order to hold the bar magnet in such a way as to protect yourself from the lethal particle beam headed your way. Which way do you hold (or aim) the bar magnet, and why?

Explanation / Answer

You would want to hold it like a shield.

With the magnetic fields forming a perpendicular direction to the incoming electrons and protons. As they will be deflected fully with the equation F = qvBsin

The maximum deflection occurs with = 90

Therefore I would hold my bar magnet with the N and S sides to the left and right of my shoulders in front of me. Therefore saving my life. xD

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