Top 10 Places to Find Physics

There are many places where physics is found in our everyday lives. Many of these situations are unnoticed and therefore unappreciated. Physics surrounds our lives, if you like it or not its everywhere. In this post I will discuss the top 10 most frequent places where physics is present and you may not be aware of it!

10. Generator:
As you are reading this, you are using a computer. Your computer has a transformer in it which utilizes two different coils of wire. One coil of wire is used to either reduce or increase the voltage that enters into your computer. A generator is also used to power the computer. This generator (the power company) inputs mechanical energy in order to either a) turn a coil of wire around a magnet or b) turn a magnet around a coil of wire. This coil of wire feels a force from the magnet and thus generates electricity. This energy is then sold to you in order to power your electronic appliances such as the computer.

9. Motor:
Our automobiles, blenders.. anything that transforms electrical energy into mechanical energy is influenced by physics. A motor works when a current carrying wire feels a force from a magnet. The magnet thus causes the copper wire to torque and either spin he blades in a blender or the wheels in a car.

8. Tides:
You may not be aware of tides but if you live on the coast (such as myself) it influences your life. The tides are controlled by the position of the moon. The moon causes a gravitational force between the earth since it has a substantial mass and is located close to the earth. This gravitational force causes high tides and low ides in our world. These tides can produce a substantial amount of electricity when harnessed.

7. Balance:
Tight-rope walkers utilize balance in order to walk across the rope. We balance our selves when we carry a back pack or a handbag without even noticing it. Balance is when our center of gravity is underneath our base of support. When this is not present, the object will fall. A tight-rope walker will often carry a long pole across the rope in order to lower their center of gravity, closer to the rope.

6.  Air resistance:
Air resistance is all around us and is usually negligible when calculating physics equations. If you want to go sky diving, this is a very importance force to have acting against you. Air resistance will increase as your speed increases when you are falling through the air. Eventually, the force of air resistance will be equal and opposite to the force of gravity and therefore you will have a constant velocity. If air resistance was not equal and opposite, you would accelerate to the point in which stopping would be impossible.

5. Gravity:
Gravity is probably the most influential force that effects our every day lives. It affects our weight since it is the force in which the earth pulls us to the ground. If you went to the moon your weight would be significantly different however your mass would remain the same. Without gravity, we would not be able to walk and if we jumped, we would continue to increase height forever. A hover craft makes friction negligible and allows the craft to continue with a constant velocity indefinably.

4. G. Force:
Newtons first law states that an object in motion will stay in motion unless acted on by a non-zero net force. When a car accelerates, we sink back into the seat because our body wishes to stay at rest but is forced to move forward. When in an airplane, g-forces can be experienced. This occurs when acceleration is felt as weight. When an airplane pitches up, you will sink back into your seat and feel heavier and thus experience a g-force.

3. Airbags
Airbags are installed in every car as a safety precaution. They deploy during accidents in order to protect the inhabitants of the vehicle. When an airbag deploys we go from moving to not moving. The change in moment is the same whether we hit the dashboard or the airbag. If the change in momentum is the same, than Impulse is also the same. Whether you hi the airbag or the dashboard since impulse is the same, airbags will increase the time and the force therefore decreases. This decrease n force protects us from a large blow.

2. Stop Lights:
Stop lights are everywhere and not many people really understand how they operate  A stop light receives a signal when a car moves over wires embedded in the ground. Since the car has magnets, the wire feels a force from the magnet and produces electricity. This signal is then sent and translated to the presence of a vehicle. Now you know why stop lights change from red to green!

1.  How does a horse pull a buggy or How do we move forward:
This is a difficult concept to understand but it occurs every day. A horse pulls a buggy because the horse exerts a force equal and opposite to the force that the buggy exerts. This is because newtons third la states that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. The buggy moves forward because the horse exerts a greater force on the ground than that of the buggy.