Seven Particles Will Collide
I admit, I had lost track of the state of supercollider research. (Don’t we all, from time to time?) So I was happy to spot this article from Reuters about the progress in Europe towards getting the next generation of collider online by the end of the year. A 2000-ton magnet was lowered into a giant cavern, and if you have a 2000 ton magnet, where else would you put it?
Seriously, I’m happy to see this research get moving. I remember when I read Michio Kaku’s Hyperspace, which talked about strong theory, additional dimensions, and parallel universes, and Kaku mentioned that at the time he wrote the book, there was no way to test the theory – that would have to wait for better technology and better math. Well, maybe progress has been made:
“We think this project is going to uncover things we cannot dream of at the moment,” said Professor Jos Engelen, Chief Scientific Officer of CERN, the 26-nation European Organization for Nuclear Research.
Some of his colleagues say the experiment, smashing particles together at high speed in a Large Hadron Collider (LHC), may bring new knowledge such as the possible existence of multiple dimensions beyond the four of traditional physics — width, length, height and time.
Others speak, if cautiously, of venturing into realms long regarded as those of speculative science fiction — multiple universes, parallel worlds, black holes in space linking different levels of existence.
Very cool.
About Dave Thomer
Born and raised in Philadelphia. Studied philosophy at Fordham University in the Bronx, where I made many great friends and met my wonderful wife. We moved back to Philadelphia, where I studied philosophy some more and became a teacher. Online and off, I'm looking for ways that we can be better citizens and build stronger communities.