LHC

[Pallidity]

Anyone been paying any attention to it? I am a complete idiot when it comes to any science beyond a basic level, but I'm still a bit curious on what others are thinking about it (particularly those that aren't physics masters xD).

[Allexiyah]

and for those who dont have a clue what you are on about?

[Zeddread]

I find this really interesting actually..[LHC is the particle accelerator that has been built in Switzerland, to discover more about the big bang and the particles that created it etc. It's been deemed the Doomsday experiment or something, because some scientists believe that it will create a black hole that will end the earth...]

When I first heard about it, I have to admit I listened to the scaremongering about the end of the world and was slightly concerned..

But yesterday I watched the program on BBC iPlayer, and it was really interesting!
I'm now really looking forward to the results, as it will mean a lot for the science world, and the results could also help towards things like curing cancer etc...

Link here http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00dccnr/b00dcc2l/
It's a good watch.

I'm now 99% sure the world won't end and 1% apprehensive.

[Pallidity]

xD

A super quick, insanely simplified summary

Not very scientific, but it's a place to start and loads easier to understand than reading anything about it (at least for me =P) I'll have to look at the link Zeddread posted. I haven't been able to understand any of it. Total mental block when it comes to physics for moi.

[Kaminoke]

Hah, my boyfriend pointed that out to me (I have a bad habit of skipping the physics articles of New Scientist), and said one of three things is going to happen. Either nothing will happen, something will happen, or we'll all be dead Gotta say, I'm not too worried about the death thing though. Millennium bug, anyone?

NS says nothing is one of the best and worst things though! They've a few articles on it, and they're all pretty simple for anyone with little physics knowledge (although you might need a little bit), that's why I like it!

[Zeddread]

xD

A super quick, insanely simplified summary

Not very scientific, but it's a place to start and loads easier to understand than reading anything about it (at least for me =P) I'll have to look at the link Zeddread posted. I haven't been able to understand any of it. Total mental block when it comes to physics for moi.

Aye, that's why the program was so good to me, because they made the science as simple as they could

[Pallidity]

I couldn't watch it, darnit. I completely understood the article Kaminoke posted, though, so I'm fairly sure everyone else on the planet will get it. =P

There was a girl in one of my classes today talking about it, completely convinced that the planet would slowly implode over the course of about 3 years. It was interesting to listen to her, but a bit on the weird side, too.

I think it'll be interesting if nothing happens and physics ends up failing to be even remotely correct.

[Sick Puppy]

OMAN

I got home from an AMAZING productive and creative day - all psyched because I am going to attempt to make some awesome circuit print foam accents for my falls

And my (now ex) boyfriend holds up this newspaper article that was appropriately titled "ARE WE ALL GOING TO DIE ON WEDNESDAY?"

Naturally, it scared the butt off me.

I just had a MAD talk with my dad - who is this science guru - and he explained the whole thing.. They are only using ONE atom and whizzing it around in this big ring, then bringing up this screen to smack said Atom into to see it seperate.

Essentially, they are trying to find what holds the protons and neutrons together.

In order for a MASS CATACLYSMIKK event - they would need to dump a BUTT LOAD of highly unstable isotopes into the machine etc etc. They are only using an oxygen one for this I think...

Still, freaking scary stuff >_<

[absolutebrutal]

oh, is it Switzerland? i was told it was Sweden. but then my fella only ever gets half a story.

him: end o'the world on wednesday, you know.
me: *not bothered* oh yeah? who's fault will it be this time then?
him: Sweden's!
me: *spits coffee everywhere* I KNEW IT!


if we don't make it... then means i never get to go to Scarefest this year. sad face.

[Zeddread]

oh, is it Switzerland? i was told it was Sweden. but then my fella only ever gets half a story.

him: end o'the world on wednesday, you know.
me: *not bothered* oh yeah? who's fault will it be this time then?
him: Sweden's!
me: *spits coffee everywhere* I KNEW IT!


if we don't make it... then means i never get to go to Scarefest this year. sad face.

Opps, no, you're right...It's Sweden... I got confuzzled

EDIT: wait no, French/Swiss border the program says....

[starlight]

it's on (or rather under) the french/swiss border..

I'm quite interested in this, but I can't say I understand a whole lot... as for dying on wedneday, that won't happen.. they're only trying to get the particles to go round the ring, which they've said will be a challenege in itself.. collisions won't be happening for a few more weeks yet..

I'm really interested in what they'll find out from this.. it could change a lot of stuff..

or, alternatively we'll discover (a bit too late) that the whole universe was started with a large hadron collider..........

[Freakonaleash]

I have to admit i was really worried about this when i first heard about it back at the start of the year.
Im still slightly concerned now, I dont see why scientists need to mess about with such things, surely there arent that many people who care about how the world came about (i know i dont really give a toss,theres more important things in life). but *fingers crossed* they are successful, find out what they need to find out and just leave it at that.

[davendor]

I read about this in the paper yesterday. Made me laugh a bit at the porspect of it making france collapse into the big hole they've made

Personally I don't think it'll work like they hope. They'll probably end up with a black mesa sort of thing and before you know it that part of Europe will be head crab central

Ready you crow bars!

[NaturalistDesigns]

Ah well, least I'll be off JSA if the world ends :/

[Phoenix]

My O/H said that if it only took an atom to create the entire universe then what on earth is what they're doing tomorrow going to create?

But then again this is the man who thinks you can get HIV if you're bitten by a mosquito who has bitten a HIV positive person beforehand..

[biowaste]

actually i can remember on the bus today someone was talking about this, and on GMTV this morning (was in the background as i was getting ready) they really exaggerated the chance of a black hole forming...

i think the whole experiment thing is great but probably wont be that much of a success... and looking at it... the chances are slim that its the end of the world... i thought to myself when i heard this that we probably have a higher chance of being hit by an asteroid or something then making a black hole...

Haha if only some people get totally freaked out by this and a person holds a sign saying "the end is nigh" and then people loot, and then we discover that we are all going to live

[starlight]

They've said that much bigger collisions happen in nature all the time, and even if they do create a black hole it'll be so small it wouldn't be able to do any damage and would just disappear.. and to be honest, I trust what the scientists say a lot more than media scaremongering, haha..

..and if it does all go wrong, it'll all be over before we've had chance to think about it

[Freakonaleash]

They've said that much bigger collisions happen in nature all the time, and even if they do create a black hole it'll be so small it wouldn't be able to do any damage and would just disappear.. and to be honest, I trust what the scientists say a lot more than media scaremongering, haha..

..and if it does all go wrong, it'll all be over before we've had chance to think about it

meant to get turned on at 6am our time tomorrow. so yeh youre right,if something does go wrong,most of us will be asleep and wont notice anything.

[starlight]

They've said that much bigger collisions happen in nature all the time, and even if they do create a black hole it'll be so small it wouldn't be able to do any damage and would just disappear.. and to be honest, I trust what the scientists say a lot more than media scaremongering, haha..

..and if it does all go wrong, it'll all be over before we've had chance to think about it

meant to get turned on at 6am our time tomorrow. so yeh youre right,if something does go wrong,most of us will be asleep and wont notice anything.

I don't think they're actually colliding anything tomorrow, just trying to get the particles to go round the ring.. they said it'll be a few weeks before they try the collisions..

[Freakonaleash]

ah fair enough. makes you wonder why the press are hyping it up now and saying that the world will end tomorrow, i hate scaremongers.

my parents have started worrying now

[starlight]

ah fair enough. makes you wonder why the press are hyping it up now and saying that the world will end tomorrow, i hate scaremongers.

my parents have started worrying now

yeah my mum was worrying too.. it's what the media does best though, get things wrong then hype them up

[Pallidity]

I think at one point I heard that if it did destroy the planet it'd end up taking a few years to do so, but then again they don't know exactly what will happen (if anything) and for all we know it could just knock a few seconds off the existence of our universe.

It's disappointing that they're just running the atom in a ring on Wednesday. If they're going to hype it up they should at least wait until something is actually happening. Sending an atom on a carousel ride isn't as much fun as making it play chicken.

[LadyLillith]

I was worried at the beginning but now I'm not so much. It is still there in the back of my mind but I'm sure the 'experts' know what they are doing. I'm still waiting for WW3 as predicted by Nostradamus to start this year. Bets on Russia being the Antichrist?

[Rhaeniel]

My hubby's been talking about this.. I mostly like listening to comedies on Radio 4 when they make jokes about it... I know just enough about it to get the jokes, but not enough to be really interested in it!
I'll be interested to see whether it works or not tho - chances are that something will break and they'll have to spend another few years fixing it!

[absolutebrutal]

welll stephen hawkins just announced on the national news that he's not worried one bit, and we have nothing to worry about either. that's enough for me =D!