What is Physicists: Definition and 445 Discussions

A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate causes of phenomena, and usually frame their understanding in mathematical terms.
Physicists work across a wide range of research fields, spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic and particle physics, through biological physics, to cosmological length scales encompassing the universe as a whole.
The field generally includes two types of physicists: experimental physicists who specialize in the observation of physical phenomena and the analysis of experiments, and theoretical physicists who specialize in mathematical modeling of physical systems to rationalize, explain and predict natural phenomena.
Physicists can apply their knowledge towards solving practical problems or to developing new technologies (also known as applied physics or engineering physics).

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  1. G

    Engineering Can physicists (applied physics or engineering physics) work in robotics field?

    Can physicists (applied physics or engineering physics) work in robotics field?? Im currently in high school and graduating this december,,,, i love physics and robotics,, so i want to do physics in college (not ME or EE)... but after i graduate in college,,, am i qualified to be a robotics...
  2. T

    Physics Unsustainable Wealth: The Rise of Finance Capital and its Impact on Society

    Hi, I've heard of physicists working on the financial sector. Do these physicists only have a bachelor degree, master or PhD? And is it difficult to go to the financial sector as a physicist?
  3. C

    Why do physicists love hiking?

    Like, seriously. What's the deal? Einstein almost lost his life hiking up a mountain, and almost every physicist I know is obsessed with hiking and is always posting such pictures on Facebook. Is it just part of their curiosity for nature, and they sense of awe they get traveling through the...
  4. M

    A doubt about Indian EE aspirant physicists

    No, not doubt as in questioning the capabilities or fact of the matter (as connoted in the western usage), but doubt as in general uncertainty / question (as I see from many Indian / Pakistani users, and grad students around my department!) Maybe this is just confirmation bias, but I notice a...
  5. H

    Do Aerospace Engineers Work with Physicists?

    My question is basically for any type of engineer that works for an Aerospace company. Do you work with many physicists? I've recently become very interested in the growing commercial space industry, so I've been researching ways to insert myself into it. I'm a rising senior...
  6. N

    Physics Physicists' Time: Do They Have Enough?

    Do physicists suffer form a lack of personal time aside from their job? I've heard many times that theoretical physicists work many hours a day. But what about other type of physicsts such as experimental, etc.?
  7. M

    Physics Do theoretical physicists need to know how to write computer programmes?

    If so, what software are the likely to use?
  8. B

    Tools of the Quantum Physicists

    Folks, I am reading some literature on QM. From what I understand QM can be used to great accuracy to predict the outcome of experiments and help to improve technology etc etc without having to worry to much about what it means i.e. the interpretations etc, i.e. the shut up and calculate...
  9. S

    Courses What math courses are useful for physicists?

    I know you need a year of calculus linear algebra and differential equations and vector calculus, but I was what would be some other really useful math courses for physicists?
  10. MathematicalPhysicist

    Textbooks in engineering for mathematicians and physicists.

    I would like it if you can recommend me textbooks in Engineering that are geared to people from the pure sciences. mainly on topics such as information theory, control theory, Solid and Fluid dynamics and Aeronautics & Aerodynamic Engineering. Thanks.
  11. K

    Recommended books on group theory(for physicists)?

    I‘m learning QFT and find it difficult, partly because I'm not familiar with group theory and Lie algebra, so I decide to tackle this during the holiday, any recommendation on the textbooks?
  12. R

    Why are physicists so adorable?

    I love physics and physicists! Studying physics and being friends with physicists make me happy. just want to express my feelings.
  13. R

    Particle Discovery Has Physicists Abuzz

    http://www.livescience.com/13594-physics-particle-discovery-fermilab.html What new particle could it be?
  14. A

    Physics Best place for theoretical physicists

    Is there any "best" place (by place, I mean country or university or organization, whatever) for theoretical physicists? Is there advantage of doing research in a developed country like US to a developing country like India? If yes, what are they? Thanks!
  15. B

    The Importance of Analysis in Physics

    I'm an aspiring physicist who is just starting out with freshman courses, so let me apologize in advance if I say something really dumb, or unintentionally offend someone. I found this forum several weeks ago, and in my reading of posts from mathematicians, I got the idea that "real math,"...
  16. T

    Physics Question about the different types of physicists

    Ok, I really want to become a physicist that specializes in time travel. Like trying to make it real and things like that. What branch of physics would that come under? Thanks for answering!
  17. P

    Hiring Scientists for Research: Are Physicists Needed?

    No its not but why do they not hire physicists? All the jobs are for engineers and astrobiologists. Don't they need scientists for research? For like the Hubble telescope or the new James Webb telescope? If I'm wrong tell me but I was just doing research and found no info on it.
  18. J

    In your opinions, who are the top 10 living Australian physicists?

    Just curious who everyone ranks as the best intellectual physicists in Australia
  19. A

    Physics How do theoretical physicists conduct research?

    Is it mostly trying to coming up with equations, solving them, reading etc.? Do they use computers a lot or can the work they do be done simply with a pen and paper?
  20. S

    Physics Where area do computational physicists work in?

    Hey Guys, I'm currently finishing up my B.S in Physics (going into the last semester of Junior year) and plan on getting a Masters in Computer Science concentrating on software engineering. I'm curious if anyone else has made a similar career choice and how it worked out. Also, which...
  21. M

    Physics Medical physicists' communication skills

    Hi I just came across this forum I am working as a physicist in a hospital. I have seen quite a few medical physicists during my career. I find that most physicists I saw are quite lack of inter-personal skills. That is quite contrary to my original expectation because I though people with...
  22. Simfish

    Is there a perception of a prestige hierarchy among physicists?

    Is there a perception of a "prestige" hierarchy among physicists? Just wondering. Are some fields (such as string theory) considered more prestigious than others? (like experimental condensed matter physics?) How does computational physics fit in the hierarchy? Of course, it certainly does...
  23. D

    Physics is too hard for physicists

    "Physics is too hard for physicists" What does this quote from Hilbert mean? My Math professor said he can't stand how vectors are used in Physics. Being a first year student, I have no clue what this means yet. All of my friends at school are Math majors and have a certain distaste for...
  24. P

    Physics Outsourcing- less for (applied) physicists?

    I heard somewhere that companies are more likely to outsource engineers than people with physics/math degrees (on the masters level obviously), since the latter is more 'versatile' and adapts easier- this is totally illogical in my mind. In an industry job, don't engineers and physicists have...
  25. A

    Vectors were introduced because they help physicists specify laws

    vectors were introduced because they help physicists specify laws without reference to any particular coordinate system...can we then say that position vector is really a vector because after all it depends on where we choose our origin?
  26. H

    Is Number Theory useful to physicists

    So I'm stil deciding whether or not I want to do a math/physics major (as opposed to just a physics major), and I was wondering if Number Theory is at all useful to physicists. I ask this because it's the easiest of the three classes I have left for my math major, which would make it perfect...
  27. G

    Greatest Theoretical Physicists of 20th Century?

    I would have to speculate they are: Albert Einstein Marie Curie Niels Bohr Erwin Schrodinger Wolfgang Pauli Paul Dirac Enrico Fermi Edwin Hubble Robert Oppenheimer Richard Feynman Julian Schwinger Sin-Itiro Tomonaga Chen Ning Yang Abdus Salam Steven Weinberg Sheldon Glashow...
  28. W

    I understand the main goal of all physicists is to unite quantum

    I understand the main goal of all physicists is to unite quantum mechanics with general and special relativity so that all physical laws hold true on any scale. Does this mean that in the future possibly one equation may be able to describe everything?
  29. T

    Wonder if the top physicists get fanmail

    OK, I was wondered about this. After I had read The Brief History of time, I thought I would be a good idea to write Sir Hawking an e-mail/letter/whatever. Than I realized, what an absurd idea that was. However, it makes me wonder if the top physicists get and fanmail. I didn't know where to...
  30. D

    Which Fictional Superheroes Also Have a Passion for Physics?

    After reading through the Dr. Mcninja series, I decided I needed a SUPER AWESOME SUPERHERO PHYSICIST to model myself after. Please list below all of the super heroes who are also Physicists (Fictional heroes preferably)
  31. C

    Yo mama jokes for physicists

    This made me laugh. See more at http://www.calamitiesofnature.com/"
  32. G

    Some modern mathematics for physicists and other outsiders Vols 1 and 2 by Roman

    Has anybody read these books? Goldbeetle
  33. N

    Where can physicists be found?

    hm... maybe I have too much time on my hands... maybe I am just taking a leap into the unknown... maybe... maybe not... anyway, to get to the point, I want to ask the good people of PF: where can physicists (nuclear physicists and astrophysicists in particular) be found in the wild? where do...
  34. C

    Physics How do you theoretical physicists stay motivated?

    Many of the most fundamental physics problems that theoretical physicists work with are really cool, but they are so abstract that sometimes it just feels that you are sitting with huge tomes/books and looking at details. How do you stay motivated? How do you bring back the taste for maths...
  35. A

    Modern Physicists: Late 1800s - Present Suggestions

    I'm taking modern physics class, and we have to do a semester long project over any physicist from the late 1800s on. My first thought was Tesla, but I want a not so obvious choice. So any suggestions would be appreciated. Just anybody that made somewhat significate contributions in any area of...
  36. DrChinese

    Physicists DO have a sense of humor

    This appeared this week: Backward Causation in Complex Action Model --- Superdeterminism and Transactional Interpretations, Holger B. Nielsen, Masao Ninomiya (Submitted on 3 Aug 2010) "It is shown that the transactional interpretation of quantum mechanics being referred back to...
  37. J

    Physics Are there physicists that study time travel

    I wonder if there is a profession in physics where physicists study time travel. If not, are there any research fields that correlate towards the study of time travel. I'm just curious.
  38. B

    Guiding principles from the great physicists to take us beyond the standard model

    Perhaps if we focus on the common philosophy of the great physicists as to what physics is and ought be, expressed in their simple words reflecting infinite wisdom, we will be better prepared to advance physics beyond the standard model. Equations are more important to me, because politics...
  39. G

    How difficult was your path towards becoming a Mathematican or Physicists?

    I know that every once in a while, people get upset over just about anything. For us Math and Physics majors, this may be even more serious since our goals (and I know I am being biased here) are greater than other professions say, medical students, even if our stress level are relatively...
  40. W

    What do physicists and engineers do?

    What do physicists do over the whole day? What do engineers do over the whole day? What are the working hours for both like? Does an engineer get sent to faraway locations often (like get sent to another country or something to get things done)? I enjoy learning and doing physics problems...
  41. B

    Programming languages used by physicists?

    It is suggested that I learn a computation oriented programming language for an physics internship which I hope to apply for soon. I'm curious; what is the most commonly used programming language in the physics community? I've heard that Fortran has been used extensively for a some time, but...
  42. M

    American Physicists: A Look Into US Dominance

    So, I have just finished my first year of college. I wasn't a physics geek in high school and only got interested in it during my Senior year. I became intrigued by the subject because for once, I found something that I had to work at and gave me a challenge, and I enjoyed this, thus I chose to...
  43. M

    Physicists are enabling increasingly large quantum systems to go into

    Physicists are enabling increasingly large quantum systems to go into a superposition state, now reaching a stage involving many thousands of particles. From what i understand they seem confident they can carry on this trend indefinitely. However doesn't decoherence impose some limitation on how...
  44. M

    Physics Radiotherapy physicists have become glorified technicians rather than clinical scient

    Radiotherapy physicists have become glorified technicians rather than clinical scientists Med. Phys. Volume 37, Issue 4, pp. 1379-1381 (April 2010) Published 9 March 2010
  45. M

    Physics The Ph.D. degree is a handicap in the job market for clinical medical physicists

    See another note on Medical Physics. The Ph.D. degree is a handicap in the job market for clinical medical physicists Med. Phys. Volume 27, Issue 12, pp. 2641-2643 (December 2000)
  46. Jonnyb42

    Unraveling the Mysteries of Spacetime: How Physicists Know

    How in the heck do physicists know that spacetime was created at the big bang just by observing galaxies moving away from each other? Couldn't that mean that that's when the MASS was created?
  47. S

    Physics What do medical and radiation physicists do?

    G'day I was just wondering whether anyone could tell me the possible carrer paths of a medical physicist. Also what exactly do they do? Thanks
  48. F

    Physicists capture first images of atomic spin

    I can't even claim to understand 'spin' as a property (even after reading that big thread about it :P) but I'm sure with the amount of discussion that generated, this could be worth talking about http://www.ohio.edu/research/communications/spin.cfm
  49. N

    Average IQ of Physicists: Is it Higher?

    what is the average IQ of physicists? is it much higher than the average IQ of general population?
  50. 6

    Math for Physicists: Preparing for Grad Level Physics

    At my school, we apparently don't have a "math for physicists" type of course, which summarizes all the more advanced math that physicists need to know. The only requirement is: multivariate calc (finished), differential eqn (finished), linear algebra. I heard, however, that the grad level...
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