Physics extends to your daily life to describe the motion, forces, and energy of the ordinary experience. Physics is at work in tasks such as walking, driving a car or using a phone. Knowledge of physics is helpful in everyday situations as well as in non-scientific tasks.
For example, physics helps you understand:
- How food is cooked in a microwave oven,
- Why a radiator helps to dissipate the heat of a car engine, and
- Why a white ceiling helps to keep the inside of a house cool.
Thousands of such questions can be answered and explained via physics.
Physics is the foundation of many critical scientific disciplines, such as chemistry is rooted in quantum physics which describes the in-depth study of atoms and molecules.
Physics is also applicable in most branches of engineering. In architecture, physics is pivotal to determining structural stability, acoustics, heating, lighting and cooling systems for buildings.
In Geology, the study of non-living parts of the Earth, such as the study of atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, earthquakes, storms, volcanoes, and other natural disasters, such as floods, droughts, and extreme heat on the Earth’s surface.
Some disciplines, such as chemical electrodynamics, optics, thermodynamics and modern physics, are important branches of physics for studying natural phenomena. Physical science also describes the chemical processes in the human body through biophysics.
Physics is implicated in medical diagnoses, such as X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasonic blood flow measurements. Physics can also explain what we perceive with our senses, such as how the ear detects sound or how the eye detects colour.
10 Examples of Physics in Everyday Life
#1. Alarm Clock.
Physics gets involved in your daily life right after you wake up in the morning. The buzzing sound of an alarm clock helps you wake up in the morning as per your schedule.
The sound is something you can’t see, but hear or experience. Physics studies the origin, propagation, and properties of sound. It works on the concept of Quantum Mechanics.
#2. Steam Iron.
Right after you wake up in the morning and start preparing for your school/office, you need an ironed cloth, and that’s where Physics comes into play. The steam iron is such a machine that uses a lot of Physics to make it go.
The foremost principle of Physics used in the steam iron is “Heat.” Heat, in Thermodynamics, is a type of energy transfer from a warmer substance to a colder one. Ironing works by having a heated metal base- the soleplate.
#3. Walking.
Now, when you get ready for your office/school, whatever medium of commutation is, you certainly have to walk up to a certain distance. You can easily walk is just because of Physics.
While walking in a park or on a tar road, you have a good grip without slipping because of roughness or resistance between the soles of your shoes and the surface of the road. This resistance, which is responsible for the grip, is called “Friction” or “Traction.”
However, when a banana peel comes under your foot, you suddenly fall. Now, what makes you fall? Well, it’s due to the reduced friction between your shoes and the surface of the road because of the slippery banana peel.
#4. Ball Point Pen.
Whether you are at your workplace or in your school, a Ball Point Pen is your weapon. Had Physics not been there, you would not have been able to write with a Ball Point Pen on paper.
In this case, the concept of gravity comes into play. As your pen moves across the paper, the ball turns and gravity forces the ink down onto the top of the ball where it is transferred onto the paper.
#5. Headphones/Earphones.
When you get tired of work or studies, listening to music comes in handy. Have you ever thought about how your headphones/earphones work? Well, it’s again because of Physics. The concept of magnetism and sound waves are involved in the science of your headphones/earphones.
When you plug your headphones/earphones into an electrical source, the magnet in your headphones/earphones creates an electromagnetic field, which ultimately results in sound waves.
#6. Car Seat-Belts.
Have you ever noticed on which principle your car seat-belt works? Well, it’s again Physics. When you tighten your car seat-belt, it works on the concept of “Inertia.” Inertia is the unwillingness or laziness of a body to change its state of rest or motion.
In case of a car collision, your seat-belt helps prevent your body from moving in a forward direction as your body resists being stopped because of inertia of motion.
#7. Camera Lens.
The phenomenon of “Selfie” has engulfed people of every age group. You entertain yourself by clicking photos. The Lens used in a camera works on the principle of Optics. The set of convex lenses provides the camera with an image outside of the camera.
#8. Cell Phones.
Cellphones have become like Oxygen gas in modern social life. Hardly, anyone would have been untouched by the effects of a cell phone. Whether conveying an urgent message or doing incessant gossip, cell phones are everywhere.
But do you know how a cell phone works? It works on the principle of electricity and the electromagnetic spectrum, undulating patterns of electricity and magnetism.
#9. Batteries.
Whether in cellphones, cars, torches, toys, or any other appliance, batteries act as saviors of electricity. Batteries work on the principle of capacitance. Since the late 18th century, capacitors have been used to store electrical energy.
Benjamin Franklin was the first to coin the phrase “battery” for a series of capacitors in an energy store application.
#10. Doppler Radar.
To check the overspeeding vehicles, police often use Doppler Radars. Doppler Radars work on the principle of the Doppler Effect. The Doppler Effect is nothing but a change in the pitch of a sound when the source of the sound is moving relative to the listener. It is because the frequency of the sound wave changes as the source of sound moves closer to or farther from the listener.
#11. Aeroplanes.
Flight physics is critical in aviation. Aerodynamics manages the forces that act on an aeroplane’s wings to allow it to fly. Bernoulli’s principle and Newton’s laws of motion are essential concepts for designing and operating aircraft.
#12. Automobile.
Several physics ideas are incorporated into automobiles. The engine uses combustion and thermodynamic principles to transform fuel into mechanical energy. The interaction of forces such as friction, inertia, and aerodynamics is involved in vehicle dynamics.
#13. Roller coasters.
Concepts such as gravity, acceleration, and inertia are used here. The roller coaster is initially dragged up a steep hill, storing potential energy. The potential energy is turned into kinetic energy when it rises the slope, ending in an exciting drop.
The track’s twists, bends, and loops influence forces like gravity and centripetal force, resulting in amazing moments of feeling weightless and tremendous g-forces. These aspects work together to provide an adrenaline-pumping experience while sticking to laws of physics that keep riders safe and engaged.