The coolest machine ever?
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is set to begin operating this year to test the validity and limitations of the Standard Model. (Among the questions: Where has all the anti-matter gone? Does the Higgs boson exist?) The collider is currently being cooled to its operating temperature of 1.9K, which is pretty darn cold. Here are some great pictures from Boston.com of this huge, awesome machine, located in Switzerland and France.
The music video above by science writer Kate McAlpine tries to put the LHC’s mission into layman’s terms. The LHC should be pretty cool — at least if it doesn’t destroy the universe. (HT’s: LGF, LHC Blog)
August 4th, 2008 at 3:20 am
Thanks for this post.
It bears remembering that in the 60s and 70s Western civ was in rockier shape than it is today. Not only did it recover, but it moved to a higher quality of life.
The people who made that possible ignored the turmoil while they beavered away at academic, corporate and government R&D. A tip of the hat to their contemporary counterparts.
August 5th, 2008 at 2:41 am
It is possible to, ah, invest in the Higgs boson.
Go to Intrade, click on ‘Scientific’, and you get a choice of the Higgs or cold fusion.
Maybe Professor Higgs should consider hedging his Nobel prospects.