The role of magnetic interactions in natural systems

Abstract

Inter-particle magnetic interactions between crystals in natural systems strongly affect their magnetic response. In the Bullerwell Lecture 2011, Adrian Muxworthy discusses how these interactions affect our ability to recover from rocks information about the ancient geomagnetic field behaviour, plate tectonics and palaeogeography, and how magnetotactic bacteria utilize interactions to improve navigational efficiency. © 2013 Royal Astronomical Society.