So magnets are made by putting a magnetic object under a magnetic field, this makes all the domains spin in the same direction, which is what defines a magnet. Also electricity running through a wire creates a magnetic field because it has a flow of electrons in one direction.
The Shepherd Magnes. The most popular legend accounting for the discovery of magnets is that of an elderly Cretan shepherd named Magnes. Legend has it that Magnes was herding his sheep in an area of Northern Greece called Magnesia, about 4,000 years ago. ... Lodestones contain magnetite, a natural magnetic material Fe3O4.
Magnets are used to make a tight seal on the doors to refrigerators and freezers. They power speakers in stereos, earphones, and televisions. Magnets are used to store data in computers, and are important in scanning machines called MRIs (magnetic resonance imagers), which doctors use to look inside people's bodies.