Waves
A wave can best be defined as a disturbance travelling through a medium, transporting energy from one location (the source) to another location without carrying matter. Each individual particle of the medium is disturbed before returning to its original state of equilibrium prior to the wave’s interference. Without necessarily being aware, we encounter waves on a daily basis: sound waves, light waves, radio waves, microwaves, sine and cosine waves, and waves on a string. These are just a few of the many types of waves we encounter going about our lives. For many, the mention of the word wave conjures up an image of water, be it ripples in a lake or the roar of the sea as it plunges towards the shore. For the purposes of our discussion, I’d ask that you image a tranquil lake. Imagine you’re standing on the shore, skipping rocks along the crystalline surface of the water, hoping to hit the other side. As your pebble smacks into the water, it sends a wave out from the point of impact. This wave has two components, a crest and a trough as it travels from one point to another; a secondary and tertiary crest usually follows the primary crest.
The amount of energy carried by a wave is relative to the amplitude of the wave. A high-energy wave is characterized by high amplitude; likewise, a low energy wave is characterized by low amplitude. When studying these waves, it’s crucial to note that the water appearing to move is actually a relatively small amount. Since water is a flexible medium, we see the wave energy move as ripples through the water. When it comes to the subject of the open ocean, the friction generated within the water produces energy that passes between ripples in the water—this process is called transition. When the water molecules receive the energy, the move forward slightly and form a circular pattern. As the energy moves closer to the shore and depth decreases, the diameter of these circular patterns also decreases. With a decreasing diameter, the patterns grow more elliptical and the wave’s momentum slows. As mentioned earlier, wave crests often follow each other in groups that continually arrive, one behind another until they are forced together. Once these waves are grouped together, they begin to grow in height and steepness. When the waves become too high in comparison to the water’s depth, the stability is undermined and the entire wave crashes into the beach, forming a breaker. There are various types of breakers, all of which are determined by the slope of the shoreline--plunging breakers caused by a steep bottom and spilling breakers qualified by a gender and gradual slope.
Hoping you enjoyed the science lesson, let’s take into account often our lives are like waves. As we explained earlier, with waves water appears to move forward, in reality little water is going anywhere. The thing about life is, we may think we’re going somewhere, we may think we’re going somewhere fast, but so often that is just spent energy. In the open ocean, friction is generated which becomes energy. It’s interesting how that fact is so germane to our life philosophies. This process is called transitions, something we in our own lives are familiar with. One of things that is important when you watch these waves, as they grow higher and more intense, they grow unstable, eventually reaching the point where they break against the shore. Once that stability is undermined, they topple. When you get too high, unsure of your abilities, that is when your stability is compromised and you tumble. We are susceptible to that phenomenon. Another thing to consider is the influence that wind can have on the waves. Winds can greatly influence how waves can hit the shore. For us as people, we have to be relentless, determined. With the process of waves hitting the shore, when we reach that goal, we need to be able to carry past that point of break over and over again without cease, each impact more impassioned than the last. That’s how the obstacles in life are, daunting, and like the waves we must never give up. This process refines us, helping us be the best we can be. The ocean teaches us one thing, and that there are times when we need to be quiet, like a lake on a spring morning or loud, as waves crashing on the shore during a storm. By paying attention to the waters around us, we learn when to be calm and listen and when to push and fight at all cost.
