There is a major error in this article using the terms "pacemaker" and "defibrillators" synonymously. Pacemakers are devices that help control the rhythm of the heart and defibrillators act as those electric paddles to start the heart up again if the heart stops. It sounds from the article like the magnet stops the defibrillator, NOT the pacemaker. Kind of a big mistake if you are trying to save lives.
Exactly. Pacemaker is not the same thing as an implanted defibrillator.
Pacemakers are usually smaller than those implanted defibrillators, which can make a distinct difference in the probability of the SmartCover magnets affecting their operation.
I'm not surprised that the teen never won the fair. It's rather common knowledge that magnets can have an adverse affect on medical devices. It's even more apparent to those that actually have a medical device inside their chest. I am, however, surprised that her father, who is supposedly a Medical Doctor, found the "discovery" shocking to the point of presenting the "findings" to ~8000 other Doctors.