What's Next in Tech (July 6, 2008)
What makes this post stand out from many others about CERN's huge high-energy physics research tool is how many facts are given, besides the two cool photos.
And, the author writes about the fear that some have that when this thing is turned on, it's gonna be the end of the world.
"Update: Lhcountdown has updated there[!} clocks, we apparently are now a little over 31 days till activation, however I wouldn't be suprised[!] if it gets delayed yet again on that date.
"The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is about to be turned on in a little over 31 days now, and we will soon find out whether or not it will open up a black hole an swallow our beloved Earth along with a large chunk of our solar system with it. For all those that haven't heard of the LHC or its doomsday theories I am serious. Some people are even trying to take it through the courts and stop its activation until more safety tests have been completed. An excerpt from lhcdefence.org, a website dedicated to trying to stop the LHC experiments is as follows:...."
I've posted about the Large Hadron Collector (LHC) before:
- "Large Hadron Collider - Huge Research Tool "
(June 28, 2008) - "CERN Large Hadron Collider: Photos "
(March 20, 2008) - "Photos of Five Cool Research Facilities"
(January 5, 2008)
2 comments:
In order for Earth to be in danger based on current assumptions, the following would need to be true:
- Micro black holes would need to be creatable at collider energies. -- This is unknown, but reasonably plausible according to the CERN Courier and CERNs public safety web site.
- Micro black holes would need to be stable and not decay. -- This is unknown, most physicists predict decay, though several PHDs of Math and Physics argue that decay is an open question.
- Micro black holes would need to grow quickly. -- This is also unknown, Dr. Otto Rossler theorizes that a micro black hole could become charged by capturing electrons "in orbit" outside its event horizon. 2008 LSAG Safety Report also accepts that if micro black holes were charged they would likely grow quickly.
The probability of danger is unknown, the legal action currently before US Federal Courts estimates high risk.
LHCFacts.org
JTankers,
Thanks for the comment - particularly for the summary of LHCFacts.org's position.
I particularly appreciate the coherent and tightly-written way that you expressed the ideas.
With due respect to your concern, however, I remember when suing over medically-certified whiplash injuries was a growth industry.
That example of professional 'ethics,' plus predictions like the Malthusian death curve that hasn't happened to date, and concerns over fusion bombs exploding the world's oceans, have made me a bit slow to fear end-of-the-world predictions.
(Exploding oceans wasn't as crazy as it sounds: Water has hydrogen in it, fusion bombs blow up hydrogen - and 'experts' drew the (logical?) conclusion.)
Unless something unexpected happens, we'll know what happens, sometime in August of this year.
Either way, it'll be interesting.
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