Math is commonly (unjustly) declared the “hardest” subject, but I think physics is worse. Since math was my best subject, I thought physics was going to be alright until the free body diagrams got confusing and static friction made no sense. There was a test tomorrow, and nothing in the unit made sense. After countless hours of staring at the textbook with no avail, I turned to my mom for help.
She interrogated me about a free body diagram. I knew that gravity pointed down, but that was about it. Was the normal force up or perpendicular to the ramp? Where did friction point? Where even was the block moving?
Noticing my confusion, she sighed and facepalmed. She loved physics as a high schooler and expected the same from me. However, I had a shaky foundation from mindlessly memorizing facts from school. I needed to rebuild my understanding of physics.
I braced myself for a super long lecture about kinematics and forces, but she instead started discussing Richard Feynman. Feynman was one of the most prominent scientists in the 20th century and a pioneer in quantum electrodynamics. He had a brilliant mind, a dynamic personality, and a passion for teaching. In addition to being a Nobel Prize winning researcher, he also hosted the famed Feynman Lectures from teaching an introductory physics class at Caltech.
From an early age, Feynman was encouraged to observe and question. When he was young, he once saw a bird with his father. Neither he nor his father knew the name of the bird. His father explained that even if they knew the name of the bird in various languages, he wouldn’t know anything about the bird unless he observed it. Feynman was curious about the world he observed, and he used these observations to formulate his own thoughts about phenomena.
As an educator, Feynman was displeased with how many schools taught rote memorization instead of promoting exploration and true understanding. Feynman believed that nothing, not even physics, was certain, so there was always room for discovery and further learning. My mom agreed with many of his thoughts on education and hoped that I could take his advice to heart.
After I agreed to think for myself and take learning into my hands, my mom patiently explained the unfamiliar concepts. Normal force is perpendicular to a surface. The block moves if the external force is enough to overcome static friction. Kinetic friction points opposite to the direction of motion, but static friction can also propel things forward across the ground or keep my phone against the wall if I press on it.
Within the next hour, I was able to confidently solve and explain the example problems. I’m nowhere near Feynman or my mom in terms of expertise, but I think physics is making a lot more sense. The more I learn, the more I realize the connections between various concepts. I still think physics is less straightforward than math, but it is wonderful to think about how the universe comes together.
