OK, someone’s got to ask. Was it accidental or deliberate ?
VB
It was a practice run. The filings are so tiny that it was a visually disappointing result.
Are you anywhere near Swinford Bridge Graeme?
Not very Kevin. Why, do you need a few 5p’s 
?
VB
It was your pictures of bridges that made me think of it.
To be honest it might not have been Swinford, I am not sure how many private toll bridges there are across the Thames.
I remember going across a bridge in the 80s and it costing 2p
I thought it quite funny to put in an expenses claim at work for the toll. 
It was returned to me by accounts as ‘Rejected - cheaper alternative routes available’ 
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Which had no doubt cost more to tell you than it would have cost to just reimburse you
That was mean of them. Even then 2p probably wouldn’t have bought you the petrol needed for a detour.
I used to drive that way occasionally if I needed to be in Eynsham or on the A40. It avoided Oxford.
VB
Whitchurch Bridge at Pangbourne is nearby. 20p these days.
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Bingo!
That was the one, as soon as you said Pangbourne it jogged my memory
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I think they were entering into the spirit of of the thing, I put in a totally separate claim for 2p to wind them up in the first place, I thought their response was quite funny
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When coming back from Reading (records or Chinese supermarket), I often take that route to a couple of decent pubs. The “Toll Master”, Pauline, is always good for a chat when White Van Man is behind you 
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We have a well in our kitchen floor - about 4ft diameter and 30ft deep. Once, as part of a street fair, I cobbled together a little ‘wishing well’ wall for it and got punters to chuck money in for charity. We’d had to work out in advance how we were going to get the money out. The existence of the original Victorian lead pipe dangling down into it made any kind of net arrangement fiddly and unreliable. So we told people that they had to trade their money in with us for modern 2p pieces. These are steel inside, of course. When we’d shut up shop I fished them all out with a magnet on a rope.
Would steel shot https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Shot-Blast-Blasting-Abrasive-Steel-Shot-25kg-1tonne-Pallet/323770792535 look better ? That said, they might be heavy enough that you wouldn’t need a magnet - a few shakes of the box and they might just fall to the bottom.
VB
The idea is to show the children that the iron we need for health is the same as the stuff we make nails and such from.
Your suggestion would make a nice demonstration of magnetism though. 
Ah, OK. Is the iron in Corn Flakes actually metallic iron ?
VB
I used to work at a company close to the bridge and moved from Watchfield to Freeland to be 3 miles away instead of 23 miles to simplify my journey to work. Just after I moved they announced they were moving to Tubney woods. Which was closer to Tubney didn’t involve a bridge crossing.
get them to eat iron fillings to make magnetic turds…
wandering around ancient and medieval Egypt. Read this and follow the links:
Then go here and prepare to spend hours exploring and learning:
http://giza.fas.harvard.edu/
Absolutely fascinating. The links from the Harvard site are fabulous. I’ve hardly scratched the surface of this. It is an amazing way to kill time during the lockdown while learning something in an accessible fashion.
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Yes. I was trying to recreate this
So the kids could do it themselves in class, if and when.
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I’m genuinely surprised. I always assumed that iron added for nutrition would be in the same form that it is in iron supplements - ferrous sulphate or some such https://www.ouh.nhs.uk/patient-guide/leaflets/files/11903Piron.pdf. Maybe stomach acid converts the metal into a compound (chloride ?) that can be absorbed through the gut wall ?
As far as the experiment goes, the stronger the magnet, the more dramatic the effect. Very strong magnets can be dangerous though (they attract ferromagnetic things and can cause impact/trapping injuries). They can upset expensive/important things too (phones, credit cards etc). I’m not sure I’d want to let small children loose with the really strong ones.
VB
Yes that’s a problem. A single neodymium magnet per group should be ok, but kids are kids and magnets could come together and cause pinching injuries.