For example, advances in the understanding of electromagnetism or nuclear physics led directly to the development of new products that have dramatically transformed modern-day society, such as television, computers, domestic appliances, and nuclear weapons; advances in thermodynamics led to the development of industrialization, and advances in mechanics inspired the development of calculus.
Zadnjih dva tisoč let je bila fizika del naravoslovja skupaj s kemijo, določenimi vejami matematike in biologije, toda med znanstveno revolucijo v 17.-tem stoletju so se v naravoslovju začeli razvijati samostojni raziskovalni programi.