The Importance of Electromagnetic Fields

Ever since the discovery of electromagnetic fields by Heinrich Hertz in 1888, the evolution of electric fields has truly taken off and propelled society and technology to what we know it as today.
Nowadays, society has become completely dependent of electric fields; without them, the world that we live in, would come to a sudden halt. Everything we use on a daily basis is directly related to electromagnetic fields ranging from radios to cell phones to satellite TV and even to light in general.
Through the combination of electromagnetic fields and the typical land phone, the cell phone was created which utilizes radio waves, created by electromagnetic fields, to transmit data across the world in a fraction of a second. This amazing device has benefited most of the world, but it has especially benefited the army. Without wireless communication an army is doomed. The wireless communication allows an entire army to be connected all at once; thus allowing very complex tactical maneuvers to be accomplished which would have been deemed impossible prior to the creation of wireless communication. In terms of the average civilian, the cell phone has proven to be an essential piece of technology to have; allowing family and friends to be connected at all times in case of an emergency. It is also very important for long distance (across an ocean) communication.
Through the creation of the satellite, which utilizes radio waves (electromagnetic fields) to send data through space to virtually anywhere on the planet, invaluable information about our planet, our solar system and the universe has been obtained. Because of its ability to send information to almost anywhere on the planet in a nearly instantaneously fashion (wirelessly), the speed to which information or news can travel has increased tenfold since the early 1900's. This allows the use of GPS tracking systems, long distance radio communication and a variety of other very useful utilities that is essential to cargo ships and other transportation vehicles. Without satellite communication (and radio communication), long distance exportation would be extremely difficult and thus hinder economical growth which would hinder technological advancement due to the lack of funds.
Aside from the obvious need of electromagnetic fields in the military and economy, electromagnetic fields play an important role in our daily entertainment as well, such as: internet and TV. Both the internet and TV do not only entertainment an individual but they educate them as well. The amount of educational television programs has drastically increased and the internet is an almost infinitely large pool of information where any individual may find information on even the most obscure of subjects. These leisures have drastically improved the average intelligence of society and thus allows society to further develop and evolve at a faster pace (The internet referred to is the new satellite internet offered primarily to those who live in areas where standard high-speed internet or internet in general is not provided).
Also, light itself is an electromagnetic field whose frequency has reached a point where it becomes visible (by the production of photons), thus creating light and as we all know, without light there would be no life on Earth and with no life on Earth, there would be no us. It is also important to know that without electromagnetic fields standard house lights could not function and in today's society, the night is almost as eventful as the day (Google Earth Nighttime can be found at the following link: http://www-static.cc.gatech.edu/~pesti/night/).
So as one can see, electric fields are extremely beneficial and essential to today's society. Without them, the military would not be capable of deploying complex maneuvers, economic growth will be hindered which will hinder technological advancements and it is essential in the areas of leisure and education of an individual.

Aside from electromagnetic fields, the society with which we live in is also highly dependent on electric motors. The first appearance of AC electric motors appeared in 1988 and was primarily invented by Nicola Tesla. These motors differ from the previous DC electric motors and were by far more practical, easy to make and more energy efficient. With the new concept of alternating current and the invention of the AC electric motors it became that much easier for automated plants to be developed which ran solely on machines (This was because of the efficiency of the AC electric motors and the ability to easily manipulate the AC currents and voltages unlike DC current and voltages). Now that factories were utilizing this new technology, it greatly increased the work output in the labor workforce. It also allowed for the mass production of almost perfectly identical objects to be created which further increased economical gain. As time passed by, these electric motors became smaller, more powerful and more efficient which allowed science to perform a variety of different research experiments and lab experiments with minimal error and a lot more precision and accuracy than a normal human is capable of. This new advancement in scientific and technological research allowed the horizons of science to expand; it allowed scientists to perform experiments that were thought to be impossible and thus has allowed them to reach into areas of science that were still undiscovered at the time. Aside from just industrial and research applications, the AC electric motor has proved itself to be invaluable in the everyday life of the average person. On a daily basis we use AC electric motors all the time. They are in almost every single appliance imaginable ranging from kitchen appliances to computers to cars to even bathroom appliances. In a kitchen there is the microwave which uses electric motors to spin the food to provide an even cooking; there is the blender which uses electric motors to blend the food; in a computer the CD-drives all use electric motors to read the compact discs; cars use electric motors in their CD-readers and air circulation fans; and lastly, electric motors can be found in electric toothbrushes which seem to be more and more common nowadays. Electric motors can be found almost anywhere on the planet, even in the most obscure of places.
So as one can see, without these motors science would have had a very hard time progressing, factories would be like those in third world countries and all the simple luxuries that we take for granted (especially that of air conditioning in the summer) would not be present.

Yet another machine which utilizes electricity is the standard computer. Computers have revolutionized this world; they have advanced technology and society at an incredible rate over the past few decades. Computers are known mainly for their ability to perform complex operations in a fraction of a second that would take the average human a few days. However, nowadays, the computer technology has become advanced to the point where it can simulate and create 3D images of extremely complex mathematical and/or physical situations (or processes) that would normally be impossible for the human mind to create or imagine. It has also allowed scientists and researchers to perform a variety of different lab experiments with almost zero percent error due to the fact that computers, combined with electric motors, perform the entire experiment and perform it with an almost flawless process. Aside from just performing the experiments, the computer is capable of collecting and recording all the data observed/created from the experiment. This feature is especially helpful when it comes to collecting data that is either too small or too fast for any human to possibly record accurately; such as the speed of light. Aside from the science aspect, computers are used in a virtually all businesses. They keep tract of almost everything that goes on; from expenses, to income, to paychecks, to loans, to bills, to keeping track of stock, etc. They eliminate the need for someone to sit down and manually do all the calculations by hand which would have normally taken them weeks to do (and that is not taking into account any mistakes they might make). This allows businesses to be ahead of the game and know exactly what is going on with their business (which is an extremely important aspect for any business owner). Aside from the business orientation, computers have been made for home use, entertainment, music recording, weather imaging and prediction and almost anything else you can think of. Computers are an extremely important aspect to society and without them this world would cease to function. .

So as one can see, electromagnetic fields, electric motors and computers are dire assets to society. Without them this world would simply shut down. There is however, one linking factor between all these essential items: electricity. Each and every one of the mentioned objects requires some form of electricity to function. So it should be evident by now at just how dependent the society we live in is of electricity. Without electricity there would be no electromagnetic fields, there would be no electric motors and there would be no computers. Without any of those, the military would become scattered and weak, industries would shut down, businesses would go bankrupt, research would come to a halt and all the small things that we enjoy each day such as music and electric toothbrushes would cease to exist. Without electricity, we would not be where we are today.

Other Articles to Consider

Deneed, Michael & Gross, Andrew. 2000 April. Business Economics: End Uses and End
Users of Small Electric Motors. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1094/is_2_35/ai_63607835
Accessed 2007 11 Mar

Kempf, Karl (1961). "Historical Monograph: Electronic Computers Within the
Ordnance Corps". Aberdeen Proving Ground (United States Army).

Sears, Francis & Zemansky Mark & Young Hugh. 1982. University Physics. Sixth
Edition. Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Series.