My control theory professor (who was also my physics advisor -- it was a small college) explained it like this: Physicists like Fourier transforms because they

My control theory professor (who was also my physics advisor -- it was a small college) explained it like this: Physicists like Fourier transforms because they go from minus to plus infinity, like the universe. Control engineers like Laplace transforms because they start at zero, and a control system also has a starting point.