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Physics - The RootsScience is a mind-bogglingly wide field of knowledge and research. These people called scientists have measured some wholly inconceivable things, and our present technology is all built on it. But, where did it start? How did we get from "googoo gaga" to knowing the temperature at the core of the Sun?
Well... let's retrace these steps, shall we? What did we know when we knew practically nothing?
Distance is the primary and most obvious thing to measure. Mathematics was basically built on that. One distance being added to another gave us addition. Adding equal distances repeatedly gave us multiplication. Deducting one distance fron another gave us subtraction, and dividing a distance into equal sub-units gave us division. So don't tell me primitive civilisations didn't do math...
Physical science is basically applied mathematics at this point. Also surface area and volume was well understood, since for instance a smaller container obviously contains less water or anything else than a larger one.
Directly related to volume is mass. This is so basic that explaining it would be an outright insult.
The next step is measuring the other constant, obvious factor of life: time. Days, seasons, seasonal cycles. These were then refined into time units more applicable to tasks. An hour as defined today did not exist until very recently, but they did develop a standard unit and sub-units over the course of time.
Next up, "fast" and "slow" was defined by relating the above two measurements. Speed is at times the difference between life and death. Thus, a faster hunter would be superior in gathering food, or escaping from a dangerous animal. The formula was not conceived, but the concept had been born. This also gave rise to the concept of acceleration.
While the formulae were defined later, space, time and mass was well understood on a practical use level. And every kinematic formula can be expressed in terms of only these factors. Take out one, and you're for the most part stuck without an answer.
In conclusion, I'd like to say we are most certainly no better informed than "cavemen" in terms of what we are working with. Our only advantage has ever been that each generation has left applications of this knowledge for the next generation to take for granted and build upon.
So, next time you see your science exam paper, or class test, be assured that your physics are all as simple as space, time and mass.
** A special thanks to Mr Henry Welman who had fed the love of physics in me between the age of 12 and 15.
