Lessons Learned From Breaking Bricks

The end of May is looming. In a couple weeks I am giving my first talk at a national physics conference in Atlanta, Georgia. A few weeks after that I will defend my Master’s thesis, which I am presently in the throes of writing. Suffice it to say, physics has largely taken over my life, but I am surprisingly unresentful of the fact. In the last few months I have rediscovered my love of physics, and so while these deadlines are stressful, doing the work to meet them is not quite as onerous as you might expect. And a good thing too, since I have three more years of this. (In case you missed the memo, I’ve decided to stay and get a Ph.D. … crazy? Just a little.).

I think one of the things I love about physics is the way in which the principles we learn as physicists so readily translate to principles we learn in the gospel. Ultimately I see physics and the gospel as not only compatible but complimentary paths that lead to the same truth: that there is a God, that we are His children, and that He loves us. Eternal truths are eternal truths, no matter the context in which you find them, and all truths testify of God. My life has been that much richer for being able to see the divine in what might otherwise be considered the mundane.

A while back I attended an institute class in which the instructor illustrated a point about power with the example of a man breaking bricks with his head.

We were talking about DC 59, with particular emphasis on verses five and six. Consistent with my nature, my mind went instantly to the physics of such a feat. If you’ll bear with me, I'd like to explain the physics and some of what I learned from it in the context of the discussion we were having. If physics just isn't your thing, feel free to jump to the conclusion.

In the language of physics, what we’re talking about here is called the impulse momentum theorem, which essentially says that impulse is equal to the integral of force with respect to time. If we don’t want to deal with calculus we can, for pretty simple cases, say that impulse is equal to force multiplied by time:

I = F*t , where I is impulse and F is force

This time is the time over which the force is acting, so it’s often represented as the change in time. Impulse is also equal to the change in momentum, but we won’t worry about that.

We can also think about this graphically. If impulse is the integral of force with respect to time, that means that it’s equal to the area under the curve of a force vs. time plot, as shown here:

The impulse for these two rectangles is the same. We can say that because the areas are the same. However the force of the darker plot is much greater, because the time is shorter. Which makes sense algebraically as well: if we want to keep the value of the impulse the same, and we increase the force, we have to decrease the time. (I hope this makes sense!)

So if we’re in the business of breaking bricks, what we want is as much force as possible. This means we want the time to be as short as possible. And we get the time to be as short as possible by increasing the speed. The trick to breaking bricks is not strength but speed. Even the wimpiest kid on the playground can break a brick if he can move his hand fast enough.

I have an uncle who’s a Shaolin master, and I was explaining this very same concept to him a couple years back. He told me that one of the things he tells his students to do to help them concentrate on maximum speed is to "focus their strike beyond the target". After this institute lesson I was reminded of that and thought it paralleled nicely. In life, if we only focus on what’s directly in front of us, we will never generate the power (or "the speed") we need to break our bricks. But if we focus our actions a little bit beyond, that is, if we focus our actions on the Savior (ie: doing everything we do in His name) we will find that we can accomplish things in His name that we could not accomplish otherwise. Moses and Enoch certainly saw themselves as “the wimpy kids on the playground” because they were slow of speech (Exodus 4:10, Moses 6:31). Joseph was a farm boy. And yet they all accomplished great things in His name. The power to do so came from focusing on the Savior: loving Him with all their heart, might, mind, and strength, and serving Him and others "with unwearyingness" ( Helaman 10:2-11).

We all have our bricks. They vary in nature, in size, and in difficulty. But no matter what challenges we face, be they Masters theses or dating or family struggles or whatever, there is nothing that we cannot overcome "through Christ which strengtheneth [us]" (Philipians 4:13).

Who knew a little bit of physics could teach you so much?