Why Physics?

From an early age I was a very practically minded person; I was more interested in how something worked than what it was supposed to do. I had an insatiable thirst for understanding, particularly as far as mechanisms, electronics, and chemistry were concerned. As I grew older, I would frequently be found looking at circuit boards, and inside old clocks for hours on end. This fascination led me to eventually repair and renovate anything mechanical or electrical including radios, clocks, doorbells, televisions (don't do this unless you know exactly what you're doing; TVs store large quantities of charge in capacitors that can easily injure or kill, as I discovered painfully) and many other items.

This was much to the frustration of my Parents, whose backgrounds lie firmly in the Arts. My studies at school became increasingly more science-oriented, and I eventually applied to study Physics at Edinburgh. My desire to comprehend how everything, big and small works was fuelled further by the excellent lecturers whose practical demonstrations frequently became a source of epiphany for me. Philosophical reasons to study physics include, but are certainly not limited to:

• A desire to understand the workings of the world around us, for no reason other than curiosity
• The belief that by gaining a better understanding of the way in which our universe works you may benefit humanity
• The understanding that science is not a selfish subject. There is a great reliance upon your fellow peers to review and expand upon your work, and that the work of others is vitally important to your own

More practical reasons to study physics include:

• Excellent and varied career opportunities from Finance and Accounting to Teaching and Research, both academic and private
• An active social environment with like-minded, enthusiastic and dedicated peers
• Travel opportunities; Physicists frequently attend conferences or collaborate on experiments in many different countries, and are always welcomed by other members of their field
• If you're lucky (or particularly good!), and live long enough to collect it, there's always the Nobel Prize :)

Conor Fitzpatrick, 22/12/06

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