Skills of a Physicist: How Important is Visualization?

[cs23]

I was told the other day that a great physicists would be given a problem and the first thing they would do is to attach it to a real life scenario, creating a mental image. Once they do that they do the math.

My questions are:

When they say create a 'mental image', is it like a mental picture or mental movie?

How important is it to create these images?

What do you think the skills of a physicists are?

 

[Pengwuino]

I'm not sure "important" is the word, but if you can't picture what's going on in even the simplest problems, you might as well change your job title to mathematician.

 

[cs23]

I'm not sure "important" is the word, but if you can't picture what's going on in even the simplest problems, you might as well change your job title to mathematician.

when you say picture, do you mean forming a 'movie' of what's happening or forming a snapshot?(photograph)

 

[twofish-quant]

]When they say create a 'mental image', is it like a mental picture or mental movie?

It depends on the problem. For me, the mental picture is usually something with stick figures.

How important is it to create these images?

For me, it's really important.