In our childhood there were things that are completely unfamiliar to modern children and teenagers. Do you remember wall carpets, chasing paintings, pioneer badges, and also the strange iron letters that could be found in any yard? If you were a child in the late 90s, you probably saw metal plates “W” or “E” (this is which side to look at).
Modern children have hardly ever heard of the existence of strange iron parts, the origin of which was shrouded in mystery. To discover such letters was a real holiday, especially the boys who came up with a lot of games with plates were happy about the find. 
Metal elements flew perfectly, so they were used as ninja combat equipment. The plates also bent perfectly, they could be given any shape, connected into different designs. The games were especially liked by the elementary school students, who not only liked to use letters in their fun, but also to come up with numerous versions of the origin of metal products.
But the mystery of the unusual plates ceased to exist for those who attended physics classes in high school. The topic of one of the many lessons at school was the device of electrical transformers, which revealed the secret of these metal plates. It was very simple! 
The plates were not invented by aliens, they were not used to conduct experiments on children. In fact, the letters that the guys found in each yard were part of the core of an electric transformer. This element of the device performed an important role of voltage conversion.
Parts from small transformers of household appliances, for example, receivers, tape recorders, televisions, fell into the hands of Soviet children. There could be several cores in one piece of equipment, and of different sizes. 
Serial production of household appliances in the USSR provided children with a large number of metal letters, which were quickly adapted for different games. At the same time, it was possible to find both a small plate the size of a stamp and an “E” that barely fit into an adult palm. It remains only to find out one important question: how did the plates get into the yard?
The answer is obvious: faulty equipment was simply thrown out into the street as unnecessary. Sometimes a failed device could be repaired, but in most cases it was not suitable for further use. 
When a tape recorder or TV turned out to be in the trash, radio amateurs got the parts they needed right at the dump. But transformers were not needed by anyone. That’s how those metal elements in the shape of the letters “E” turned out to be on the street. Modern children do not find iron plates not because they rarely play outside (although it is difficult to argue with this statement).
They just stopped producing televisions with a core. Modern models are equipped with power supplies with transformers on ferrite cores, which do not provide plates, so beloved by Soviet boys. 
That is why our children simply do not know about the existence of metal letters that have irrevocably sunk into oblivion. As a child, we were surrounded by many mysteries that were so interesting to solve.
If you missed physics lessons at school, you might not have found out where the amazing metal plates in the shape of letters came from in your yard. We hope that our video has helped you not only to solve the mystery of childhood, but also to plunge into pleasant memories from the happiest time in everyone’s life.