Personal Narrative Essay: Physics Is Love

Most people have an innate interest in physics. It is in human nature to want to understand how the world works, to answer the big questions that physics aims to answer; but not everyone chooses to tap into that fascination for physics. I would say that I have. I have always been a student who is not satisfied with just the surface level facts about physics and the world around us that you learn in lessons, but who also wants to understand concepts more deeply.  

I discovered my love for physics when I started studying it at a higher level in school, during my GCSEs. I was amazed by the beautiful complexity of the universe, and physics being the subject that aims to explore that the most, I was naturally drawn to it, and so I knew that physics was what I could see myself studying in the future, being the subject that sparked my curiosity the most. 

Outside of school, I have engaged in many activities to help foster this interest. Through the SEREN programme, I attended a week-long Cambridge Engineering Society school. Although I knew I would not be studying engineering, I chose to participate because of the nature of the course, which involved using the Isaac Physics site to answer challenging maths and physics problems on subjects I had not studied before, worded in ways vastly different to A Level physics questions. It presented an intellectual challenge as I had to approach the problems with unfamiliar methods, meaning it helped to develop and improve my lateral thinking skills. Under the same programme, I attended a summer school held by Magdalene College, Cambridge, focussing on physical sciences. This was an amazing opportunity for me to attend university style lectures, and to work with a tutor in smaller sessions. It helped reinforce my interest in studying physics to a higher level, and fed my curiosity, as I was able to ask questions to professors who were experts in their fields, so that I can go into my studies with a more inquisitive mind in the future. 

During August, I completed a week-long work placement at a nearby hydroelectric power station. I applied for the placement as I wanted an insight into the practical implications of physics in the modern world. I worked in various areas; I looked at the physical side of running the power station, which required me to think on my feet, and the statistical analysis side, where I had to use my maths skills. 

Overall, my favourite part of the week was exploring the electrical engineering sector, where I started by revising topics I was already familiar with, like basic electrical circuits, I then had to utilise knowledge I’d obtained from A-Level Further Maths to understand how electrical engineers use more complex concepts like imaginary numbers and vector diagrams in their work, such as when looking at reactive power. I learnt to rely on previously developed skills to apply to new ideas, and seeing how concepts I’ve learnt in class have many applications that I don’t yet know about was eye opening to me, providing me with more motivation to delve further into physics.  

Last year, I became interested in reading material on physics, so I read the incredibly poignant A Brief History of Time, by Stephen Hawking. I particularly enjoyed the mentions in later chapters of more unconventional theories at the time the book was written, such as string theory and parallel universes, as I like finding out about any new potential scientific theory or discovery. 

Hawking frequently mentioned the great physicist Richard Feynman, and intrigued by the mention of Feynman’s contributions to physics, I decided to research Feynman’s work in more detail. I did this by reading the book “Six Easy Pieces”, which contains six of Feynman’s lectures. I found the gradual step up from simple ideas to more difficult ones means I have retained a lot of useful information from reading this book. 

After seeing in the past year the amazing ways that physics drives progress in tangible ways in the modern world, and the incredible amount of knowledge that has been amassed through the research of physicists, I find myself more driven than ever by a passion for knowledge, and I hope to be part of, as Hawking puts it, humanity’s continuing quest for a complete description of the universe we live in.