The discussion revolves around the rationale for including circuits, such as resistors and capacitors, in general physics courses. Participants explore the relationship between man-made circuits and natural phenomena, questioning the relevance of electronics in the broader physics curriculum.
Participants express a mix of agreement and disagreement regarding the inclusion of circuits in physics courses. While some see the value in understanding electronics for practical applications, others remain uncertain about the distinction between natural and artificial topics in physics.
Some participants note that the relevance of circuits may depend on the specific context of physics education and the intended audience, such as engineering students versus pure physics students.
Choppy said:Are you really asking why you need to understand how basic electronics work?
In order to do just about any experimental work it is essential to know exactly what your intruments are telling you. And just about every lab out there uses some kind of electronics. I don't think you need to be an electrical engineer to be a good experimentalist, but I think you would be hard-pressed to find anyone working in a lab who would say they don't need to understand the basics of electronics.
In my job (medical physics) for example I need to understand how an ion chamber collects charge and an electrometer then integrates the resulting current so I can accurately determine radiation dosages. I need to understand pulse forming networks, leakage currents, and high and low pass filters. All of this requires a basic foundation in electronics.
Another way to look at it migh be that in a general physics course, you study precisely how basic tools work: levers, pulleys, lenses, spings, pumps, etc. and basic electronics is a natural extention of this.
G01 said:I'll second this answer and add:
Also remember that the introductory physics courses and many universities are also introductory courses for most engineering majors. For example, at my university, an electrical engineering major will see basic circuits in his/her intro physics class first. Then, after this introduction, he/she will take the more advanced circuits courses in their major.
The main point is that basic circuit knowledge is important for many different disciplines, physics included. Thus, it makes sense to offer a basic introduction to circuits in the introductory courses, does it not?
Redbelly98 said:One thing I like about circuits is: the idea of potential energy is actually useful for understanding a common everyday phenomenon.
Aerosion said:it's a question I've been wondering for a little while: why do we learn about resistors and capacitors, etc in a general physics course? all the other coursework is about things that happen naturally in nature: mechanics, gravity, lenses, magnetism; but then we devote several chapters to man-made circuits which look like they belong in an electrical engineering course. so why do we learn it?
G01 said:I'll second this answer and add:
Also remember that the introductory physics courses and many universities are also introductory courses for most engineering majors. For example, at my university, an electrical engineering major will see basic circuits in his/her intro physics class first. Then, after this introduction, he/she will take the more advanced circuits courses in their major.
The main point is that basic circuit knowledge is important for many different disciplines, physics included. Thus, it makes sense to offer a basic introduction to circuits in the introductory courses, does it not?
daveyinaz said:An entirely more constructive comment than that made by Vanadium...