The Magnetic Pull of Fortune

Lightning lit up the evening sky and crashes of thunder broke the silence of the countryside as Bijoy made his way to his friend Deb’s ancestral home in the outskirts of Kolkata city.

It wasn’t raining yet, but it looked like a storm was brewing on the horizon. Bijoy wore glasses, was dressed in soiled trousers and a frayed shirt, and looked tired with his drawn out face and dishevelled hair. Nobody would have guessed that he was a serious researcher, and his humble talk with the rickshaw puller as he got down at his destination gave nothing away.

Magnetotactic bacteria are a group of bacteria that were discovered by Richard P. Blakemore in 1975. These bacteria orient themselves along the magnetic field lines of the Earth’s magnetic field, using special organelles called ‘magnetosomes’ that contain magnetic crystals like magnetite or greigite.

Every magnetic crystal is a tiny magnet with south and north poles, and just like magnets are attracted to each other by their opposite poles, these magnetic crystals too are attracted by the Earth’s magnetic field. Even dead bacterial cells align to the field like a compass needle.

However if a magnet is placed locally in a direction opposite to the Earth’s magnetic field, the bacteria align as per the local magnetic field created, from south to north. If a magnet is placed next to a ‘slide’ (glass plate on which bacteria are placed for observation), the bacteria move to the north end of the magnet.

The alignment is believed to aid these organisms in reaching regions of optimal oxygen concentration. Magnetotactic bacterial cells have been used to determine south magnetic poles in meteorites and rocks containing fine-grained magnetic minerals.

Bijoy stood and stared at the big palatial building that towered over the rest of the houses in the countryside. He had never been to Deb’s house before, and he had sent his luggage and all the instruments and chemicals needed to set up his lab in advance, without even seeing the place.

Though he knew that Deb’s ancestors had been Zamindars, he had never thought that Deb’s house was this huge! How could someone, who had lived in such opulence earlier, have fallen on bad times now, he wondered.

Before he could ring the bell, the door was opened by Deb. His face, which was creased with lines of pain and worry, lighted up like the sun when he saw his old friend. However, Bijoy’s smile waned as he saw Deb’s frail, worn-out figure.
“Bijoy! You’re finally here!” cried Deb joyfully, drawing Bijoy into a hug. “I’m so glad to see you! Come in, now, quickly, before the downpour starts.”

Bijoy stepped inside and looked around. He noticed that very few pieces of the famed antique furniture that he had heard of remained, but every piece that did remain there, was of great value. Cane chairs and a modest diwan with a tiny circular wooden table at the centre made up the sitting room.

“You must be tired”, said Deb, and made him sit down. “Let me get you some tea.” Deb called out to someone in the kitchen, and a servant appeared, holding a tray with a teapot and two tea cups. Deb poured out the tea with his own hands, unable to contain his exhilaration at seeing Bijoy.

“You’ve had a long journey, Bijoy”, said Deb, handing over the tea to him. “I have made the best arrangements possible for your stay, but don’t hesitate to ask if you want something more.”

“I may have had a long journey, Deb”, said Bijoy. “But it’s you who look more tired out than me! I know you have financial problems but I have never seen you look like this! What’s wrong?”

Deb sank down into one of the cane chairs. “There’s a lot to tell; why should I spoil your mood as soon as you arrive? I will tell you later.”

“I demand to know everything right now, Deb”, said Bijoy sternly. “You asked me if I could help you with getting a tenant for a portion of your house; I offered to be a tenant myself.

When you said you needed the rent and couldn’t take money from me, I decided then and there I would come here and help you out of this mess, whatever it is! Now tell me the truth!”

Deb sighed. He knew Bijoy’s stubborn nature. Once he had decided to get something done, he would not rest till it was done. “It’s all out of my control now, Bijoy”, he said. “I never thought I would be reduced to such dire straits. All I know is that my father started a business— I didn’t even know what business it was— while we were in college together.

He never told me anything about it, and sent me abroad for higher studies too. When I said I would continue working abroad, he insisted that I come back, saying that we had enough for three generations and more, and I need not work to support myself.”

“Did you start looking after the business affairs once you came back?” queried Bijoy. “No, he never allowed me to interfere with his business dealings. He left me to enjoy my love for drama and literature. It was too late when I realized that we had lost almost everything”, said Deb.

“My father fell sick, unable to bear the shock of the huge losses. All I understood was that he had undertaken a rather risky deal for a client, who did not pay him at the last moment. I doubt that it is for this venture that he used up most of our financial reserves and also took loans.

Yet, he refused to reveal his business details. Even on his deathbed, he could only mumble about some magnetic or magnetite idols.” “Magnetite idols?” Bijoy raised his eyebrows in interest. “Well, something like that. My servant’s version is that a few people had commissioned a deal with my father for some highly expensive, antique idols worth crores of rupees.

He says that my father procured it and gave it to them, who did not pay him for it. And ever since my father fell sick, I have seen no sign of these mysterious visitors. However, he is just a servant, who must have eavesdropped on their conversation and understood only bits and pieces of it.

I cannot file even a police complaint with that information.” “You would be surprised Deb, that even my research work is on bacteria that can react to magnetic fields—” began Bijoy, but Deb continued to speak, completely immersed in his
own thoughts.

“— selling some antique furniture paid away many debts but I still need money, and only this house is remaining, maybe I should sell it—”

“Deb, as long as I’m here, you need not worry”, said Bijoy reassuringly. “I’ll help you clear all your debts. You won’t have to sell this beautiful mansion, do you hear?”

Deb smiled gratefully. He hoped his fortune would take a turn for the better. “Now come with me Bijoy, let me show you the rooms I have kept aside for your lab”, said Deb, dragging Bijoy away to the back portion of the mansion.

Both friends were busy the next few days, trying to set up Bijoy’s laboratory. At the end of it, a satisfied Bijoy heaved a sigh of relief. Now he could start his work in peace! All he had wanted was a quiet place to work, away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Deb did not disturb him, and gave him all the space and solitude he needed.

One day, Bijoy was examining his favourite bacteria under the microscope situated on a side table along the edge of the room. What he liked best about them was that these bacteria could align themselves along the earth’s magnetic field.

His previous experiments had shown that they preferred the North pole, and they all piled up to one end from south to north when he observed them under the microscope. He knew that they contained something called magnetosomes, which helped them show this property, and wanted to learn more about it.

However, that day, he simply couldn’t get a good view of them; either the lighting wasn’t proper or the table’s tilt interfered with his observation. He could see them piled towards the left end of the slide, but that was all. Irritated, he finally moved a smaller table to the centre of the room where there was ample lighting, and started observing them again. To his surprise, he now found all the bacteria huddled towards the right end!

Bijoy was dumbfounded. He took it back to the side table. There, the bacteria went back to the left side. How could this be? There were no other strong magnets there to create a different magnetic field in the room, that was different from the earth’s! The problem seemed to be only at the centre of the room!

Bijoy started looking around on the floor. Was there some magnetic force coming from there? He tapped the floor. It seemed hollow. He pulled back the carpet on the floor, and right there, in the centre of the room, was a cleverly hidden trapdoor!

Hurriedly, Bijoy opened it, while calling out for Deb. When Deb came rushing to see what had happened, Bijoy was already inside the hole!

“Bijoy, what’s wrong? Where are you?” called Deb, worried. “Deb, come here”, came Bijoy’s muffled voice through the trapdoor. When Deb went closer, Bijoy handed over a big dusty package to him, while he himself struggled to clamber out of the hole.

“What’s this?” asked Deb, wide-eyed. Bijoy was smiling. “If my guess is right, these are the magnetite idols that your father was talking about”, he said, “Open them and have a look.” Deb carefully opened the package, and there emerged, as Bijoy had predicted, the lost idols!

“So they had been here in the house all the while!” cried Deb, his eyes welling up with tears. “But how did you find them, Bijoy?”

“Let’s say my bacteria found them for us. These magnetotactic bacteria which I work on, usually align along the earth’s magnetic field towards the north pole, unless influenced by a much stronger magnet situated close by.

And today, I guessed the presence of a stronger magnet under the floor that was making my bacteria behave strangely. That’s how I found this trapdoor.”

“Now I can repay all my debts, and restore my father’s reputation and estate”, said Deb, hugging Bijoy.”

By: Sneha Verghese