As our department name suggest,
we do physics here for national development and of course for a living
too. So what is physics to the ordinary man?
A good dictionary would define
physics as the “study of matter, energy and the interaction between
them” The word ‘Physics’ comes from the Greek ‘Knowledge of nature’ and
in general, the field aims to analyze and understand the natural
phenomena of the universe. It is sometimes referred to as natural
science. Scientist of all disciples makes use of the ideas of
physics, from chemists who study the structure of molecules to
paleontologist who try to reconstruct how dinosaurs walked. It’s the
foundation and superstructure of all engineering and technology of
today. No engineer could design any kind of practical
device without first understanding the basic principles of physics
involve, To design a spaceship or a mouse trap, one has to understand
the basic laws of physics.
The other reason why we study
physics is curiosity. You will find it challenging, sometimes
frustrating, occasionally painful, and often richly rewarding and
satisfying. It appeals to our senses of beauty as well as our rational
intelligence. Our present understanding of the physical world has been
built on the foundations of ideas laid by scientific giants such as
Galileo, Newton, Maxwell and Einstein and their influence have extended
far beyond science to affect profoundly the ways in which we think and
live.
