Large Hadron Collider -- goodbye cruel World??

Parent Cafe
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<p>It’s amazing the number of people who are concerned that the LHC is going to kill us all…</p>

<p>[$10</a> Billion Science Project to Launch](<a href=“News, Politics, Sports, Mail & Latest Headlines - AOL.com”>News, Politics, Sports, Mail & Latest Headlines - AOL.com)</p>

<p>I mentioned it to astrogirl, who said that someone on facebook invited her to join the “Anti-LHC Petition” group. Her response was to un-friend them. Obviously it was someone who didn’t know her very well…</p>

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<p><em>gets sucked into black hole</em> ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!! lol :p</p>

<p>I heard a great joke by Frankie Boyle on a show called Mock the Week (youtube it). He said something along the lines of:
“you know, a lot of people think this is gonna cause the end of the world or something. Personally, I hope the experiment is a huge success. I hope they figure out whatever they want to know about protons or whatever, and then the whole of our existence just dissolves into nothing. Then a big sign comes up that says:
‘LEVEL 2’”</p>

<p>lmao</p>

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<p>In September 9th’s *Birmingham Post<a href=“UK”>/i</a>, columnist Richard McComb quipped, “The CERN boffins say they are only going to make lickle-ickle black holes, about the size of a midget’s bucket, so there will be no harm done. The mad fools. Watch them disappear into the vortex, just like Oddjob in Goldfinger when he gets sucked out of the plane. That’s what happens when you go near a black hole. Boom! The clue’s in the name, stupid: they’re black, and they’re holes.”</p>

<p>Collisions won’t begin for about a month or so. At that time, we’ll know whether CERN’s scientists are technological geniuses or just Apes With Tools.</p>

<p>Perhaps a trip through a black hole is survivable. Hmmm… which dimension shall I choose?</p>

<p>Seriously, I am far more excited than anxious. I am very curious to see if the LHC might prove to be a source of nearly unlimited (clean) energy; if so, then oil and coal producers will no longer have the world in a financial stranglehold. (Geopolitical ramifications would be significant.)</p>

<p>About sixteen minutes to go….</p>

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<p>I wonder if Texas is jealous. Or just sad.
<a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/science/11collider.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/11/science/11collider.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Steven Weinberg reflects.
[From</a> BCS to the LHC - CERN Courier](<a href=“http://cerncourier.com/cws/article/cern/32522]From”>From BCS to the LHC – CERN Courier)</p>

<p>$11 billion seems like such a paltry amount these days, compared to… other things.</p>

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<p>Yeah, I remember all the land around Waxahachie being gobbled up for the superconducing supercolider. I can still hear Phil Gramm’s voice in my head talking about it.</p>

<p>We were laughing last night about what if the folks who were saying it would destroy the Earth were right…we’d all be up in heaven saying, “Whoa, those guys were right…”</p>

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<p>I am utterly fascinated by this story. I hope there is lots of news for me to read.</p>

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<p>My kids called us last night to say good-bye (jocularly) just in case.</p>

<p>It sounds like they’ve got the possibilities pretty covered, but you gotta be just a wee bit conCERNed when things like this happen:</p>

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</p>

<p>[Fermilab</a> ‘Dumbfounded’ by Fiasco That Broke Magnet](<a href=“http://www.photonics.com/content/news/2007/April/4/87089.aspx]Fermilab”>http://www.photonics.com/content/news/2007/April/4/87089.aspx)</p>

<p>Good to know they have a handle on what they’re doing; wouldn’t want to think that human error is ever a possibility.</p>

<p>This quote can also make one pause:

[In</a> the beginning: scientists get ready to hunt for God particle | Science | The Guardian](<a href=“http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/nov/20/topstories3.science]In”>In the beginning: scientists get ready to hunt for God particle | Science | The Guardian)</p>

<p>So, my question: all kidding and paranoia aside, do we ever question if some type of science “should” be done? Is it possible for human reach to stretch toward human (or world) destruction, and should we include consideration of that possibility in our calculations? Just throwing that out there for discussion.</p>

<p>And, as far as the call from the kids, we reassured them that the collisions won’t actually take place for a couple months, so, no worries!:)</p>

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<p>I read an interesting articlle a few years back on the topic of who should decide-if anyone-what type of science should be done. It was around the time someone started sending a beacon into space so beings on other planets could find us. The author said, that in absence of any evidence at all, we should assume that there is a 50-50 chance that the ETs would want to destroy or conquer the Earth. If there is a 50% chance of destruction of the planet, why would we want to send a beacon so they could find us?</p>

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<p>When I lived in Arizona in the 80s, it was in competition for the Superconducting Supercollider. It was a HUGE disappointment to lose out to Texas. It’s a shame it never came to fruition.</p>

<p>Science just isn’t very important in this country . . . unless it leads to better bombs. (Sigh.)</p>

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<p>missypie, “up in heaven”? I like an optimist! :D</p>

<p>My SIL’s dad was very involved in the SCSC in Waxahachie.</p>

<p>Also, there’s a funny CERN-related rap on YouTube. Check it out.</p>

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<p>I was listening to an interview with a theoretical physicist a couple of weeks ago about this. His take is that nothing is being created or generated that doesn’t currently happen around us each and every day. His point was that the Hadron Collider merely makes it possible to study it in a controlled environment. He is hoping it will confirm the theory of super symmetry as it pertains to matter and anti matter. </p>

<p>I suppose anything is possible, but he made it sound fairly benign. He did say he was only 99.9% certain nothing would happenb though.</p>

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<p>We’re okay. Title of an article that showed up this morning on my local paper’s web site: “Particle test successful: World still here”</p>

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<p>Well, I imagine we’ll be okay, but today’s operations are not the ones which were the theoretical threat. It’s not until they collide the beams that the big stuff happens. This won’t be for weeks or possibly months.</p>

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<p>I saw the Physics Rap on YouTube! Shared it with my kids.</p>

<p>The best cartoon was Jim Borgman’s in the Cincinnati Enquirer: It shows the world having been sucked into a black hole and the only thing that can save it is “a counterforce that sucks even more”–the Bengals! :D</p>

<p>Maybe only funny to hometown fans…</p>

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<p>D updated her facebook today with this link… :D</p>

<p>[Has</a> the Large Hadron Collider destroyed the earth yet?](<a href=“hasthelhcdestroyedtheearth.com - hasthelhcdestroyedtheearth.com”>http://www.hasthelhcdestroyedtheearth.com/)</p>

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<p>Guess it’s not funny in some parts of the world. How sad!</p>

<p>[Indian</a> girl commits suicide over ‘Big Bang’ fear - LHC - MSNBC.com](<a href=“http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26641652/]Indian”>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26641652/)</p>

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<p>This IS sad, patsmom. Any of the specific doomsday predictions, and those people who latch on to them and sensationalize them, is a sad reality in today’s world, I’m afraid.</p>

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<p>The black holes, I believe, if they form will be about the size of a proton. My son commented he’d like one as a pet. </p>

<p>I think the whole thing’s cool. The numbers boggle the mind. Talking millionths of a second after the big bang and billions of degrees. Do hope they find some dark matter, or it’s back to the drawing board.</p>

<p>I watched a show last night on History channel, I think, maybe Science channel. Steven Hawking said the universe will not be destroyed by this experiment. That’s good enough for me. Sad to see how this man’s body has failed his brilliant mind.</p>

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<p>Idiotic coverage by the broadcast media - </p>

<p>Okay, a minute ago the NBC Nightly news covered the collider enough (about 40 seconds or so) to flippantly state something to the effect ‘some say it might spell the end of the world’, ‘they operated it today’, ‘the world is still here’, ‘we’ll be right back after this commercial break’. That was it. There was no coverage of what the collider is, what it does, why some people think it might be the end of the world, the potential science gain, etc. They also didn’t bother to mention that it’ll be another month or so before they actually collide particles which is where the fear is in some.</p>

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<p>yep, the potential morbid oh-let’s-panic angle is gone…why report on it anymore?!! Guess we’ll have to follow the geeky science mags to get any more news on it from here on.</p>