Laser: Boon or Bane
Laser? How wide is your knowledge when I come to this matter? What a great force a Laser have! It can slice and drill any object in its way. What a great force it is, even greater than the Sun’s. Would it be the world’s supplier of energy or would it be a great mass of weapons that will destroy our world.
When light comes from the sun or from lighted lamp, these photons vibrate out of step---like people milling about in a marketplace. Slimly put, as sunlight travels, it spreads out until dissolves into thin air. But if these photons were brought together or brought into step like marching soldiers through the process called stimulated emission, then the light becomes coherent. This means that the photons became systematically connected or related to one another. This is the kind of light produced by the laser. Since laser light does not fan out like that of a flash light, it can be focused and aim at one place.
The process of stimulated emission is actually the action of strong heat, electricity, or light on any matter (gas, liquid, solid) in an enclosure called resonator. For example, when light passes through a highly energized crystal, it stimulates more light to come out from the crystal. The light that comes out is usually in step with, and in the same direction as the stimulated light. Therefore, since its light waves are all coherent, a laser beam can be very, very strong indeed!
Since then, many kinds of lasers have been made. Some give out a continuous beam of light, while others give only a pulse of light lasting only one-thousandth of a second. This may short-lived, but the strength of the pulse is tremendous!
Imagine the strength of light that can slice through steel and concrete easily as knife through butter. Or on can drill holes on a very hard substance besides being able to weld metals. It seems unbelievable, but that is how strong laser beam can be. And wonder industrial firms have found laser useful!
And do you know that the surgeons can now perform bloodless surgery using laser beams? It is true! Laser beams have found use in eye surgery, in the destruction or removal of cancerous or diseased cells, and in the treatment of hearing as well as skin disorder. All these are performed in much less time than what it takes a usual surgical operation.
Laser is also used in military weapons such as laser-guided missiles or what we call “smart bombs” is accompanied by lasers. As we say that every objects have good and bad sides. And laser is no exception to this. Any objects used in undisciplined ways will caused a great effect that will mark a history in the existence of mankind. Do we want this to happen, oh I hope It wont happen!
Will laser be the answer that will meet the world’s energy needs or would it be an array of destruction and death that will put an end to us all?