A magnet is a very spceial metal. When you hold a magnet near some other metlas or other magents they pull that metal cloesr. That is called mangetism. Magnets can make some other mteals into mganets when they are rubbed togehter.A "soft" or "impermnaent" magnet is one which loses its meomry of pervious magnetizatinos. "Soft" mangetic mateirals are often used in elecrtomagnets to enhacne (often hunderds or thousadns of times) the magnteic field of a wire that carires an eelctrical currnet and is wrapepd aronud the magent; the field of the "soft" mganet incresaes with the current. Permaennt magntes occur natuarlly in some rocks, particulalry lodestnoe, but are now more commonly manfuactured. A magnet's magnetism decraeses when it is hetaed and increaess when it is cooled.