Don’t tell her the subject is too abstract or the University of North Carolina junior physics major will get on a roll.

• "In high school, we went on a ski trip and the whole thing was physics. We had to calculate the slope of the slope. We had to measure the power of the ski lifts. Everything."
• "When I would watch sporting events I would think they just need to take a physics class and they’ll know how much to force to use when they shoot the ball."
• "I am a swimmer and we are learning about the suit controversies in competitive swimming. With those suits they are taking advantage of all the physics principles possible, mainly fluid dynamics."
• "In art you’ll see a painting and it’s the abstract paintings that are so disorienting, but you know what? They had some pattern in mind, so it’s not really random. That relates to physics because in the world there is nothing random. There is a rationale behind everything in the world and that gives the world beauty."

And what does she plan on doing with her understanding and curiosity about how things work? She plans on becoming a patent agent — someone who writes and files patents on behalf of companies. Then later, she might go on to law school to be a patent attorney. Carlson adds that the patents she files will no doubt be reminders that physics is everywhere.