The Large Hadron Collider, the long awaited upgrade to the particle accelerator operated by CERN will begin operation on September 10th. Built out of a 17 mile long ring, the hopes of particle physicists throughout the world hinge on its successful operation. For the first time in years scientists will get a chance to see some new data in particle physics, a field which has pretty much languished in the murky world of theory since the discovery of the top quark way back in 1995.
The next few years should prove to be exciting. In addition to "wrapping up" the standard model by finding the higgs boson, a hypothetical particle believed to give particles their mass, the accelerator may be able to test many radical ideas like the existence of "extra" dimensions. Or who knows, maybe it won't find the higgs. Now that would be an exciting result. Scientists would have to go back to the drawing board to explain where mass comes from.
No matter what happens, one thing is for sure. The long-awaited LHC is going to usher in an exciting new era in physical science.
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3 days ago
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New era yes, hopefully not an era that lasts only 50 months to 50 years.
Collissions scheduled to begin October 21 at slowly increasing energies, but some estimates are that collisions may be delayed until 2009.
The CERN Courier predicted possible micro black hole creation at one per second. Dr. Rossler estimates that the probability of micro black hole creation might be in the 10% to 16% range. If created then 50 months to 50 years might be required for a micro black hole to destroy Earth according to Dr. Rossler's calculations.
Professor Rossler's plea to the world for an emergency safety meeting re-posted at lhcfacts.org.
"A nightmarish situation, that can still be hoped to be averted in time through communication within the scientific community, is drawn attention to. Only a few weeks remain to find out whether the danger is real or nothing but a mirage. After this time window is closed, it will take years until we know whether or not we are doomed. The story line has all the features of a best-selling novel. The reader is asked to contribute constructively."
Quote from Dr. Otto E. Rossler, Professor Theoretical Biochemist, visiting Professor of Theoretical Physics, inventor of the Rossler Attractor, founder of Endophysics, winner of the 2003 Chaos Award of the University of Liege and the 2003 Rene Descartes Award.
Professor Rosslers latest interview with science journalist Allan Gillis be found at scientificblogging.com
I've Got Einstein on my Mind
by Jim Purdy
Listen to me one and all, Oh dear,
For bad news I bring, The End is Near.
In the UK, the Daily Mail tried to clue us in,
That those mad scientists are going to do us in.
Yes indeed, they have published a news article
Warning us of a runaway sub-atomic particle.
The Large Hadron Collider is to blame,
And our universe will soon end in flame.
Oh man, the fireworks will be spectacular,
It'll be so big, I won't need my binocular.
As the end nears, some may grieve and mourn,
But I'll enjoy the show, just eating my popcorn.
Someday I'll entertain grandkids with the story I'll tell,
Oh. Wait. I guess I won't have any grandkids, oh well.
In college, we laughed at those physics dorks,
Always talking about their tachyons and quarks.
Yes, soon the world will be gone, we'll be no more,
Thanks to guys named Fermi, Heisenberg and Bohr.
So, as I await the end of all mankind,
I've got Albert Einstein on my mind.
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