by Marc
9. September 2008 10:25
Tomorrow they (assorted boffins from around the world) turn on the Large Hadron Collider. I'm in awe of the engineering that this represents - it's the largest machine ever built on the planet as far as I know; it's a 27km underground circular tunnel with several massive support buildings above ground and it's initial purpose is to replicate the conditions present in the Big Bang. It does this by shooting really, really small particles down the tube really, really fast and watching what happens when they collide.
(Where "really, really small" is "sub-atomic" and "really, really fast" is "as close to the speed of light as we can make it". Not the most accurate description you've ever seen I know, but it's all you're going to get from me; I'm not a particle physycist!)
There is also a "non-zero probability" that it will create an artifical black hole which will destory the planet and end human existance. Which technically brings it just within the remit of this site, since I can say "not likely". Mainly though I just wanted to put something down about it, because it's cool!
Tomorrow we should know a little bit more about the world we live in. Actually it'll probably take them several years to analyse the data, but it all starts tomorrow. I'm all for that.