Large Hadron Collider

While I have my science head on, I just have to say something about the Large Hadron Collider. Just to explain to my overseas reader, over here in the gutter press (Trash Tabloids), there has been a lot of nonsense about the CERN LHC and the risk that it could cause the end of the world.

While I don't claim to be a physicist, nor do I fully understand partial physics, what I do understand of the science tells me that it is impossible for the LHC to create a black hole on earth. Apart from anything else this is not the first particle smasher, it is just the largest. Therefore, these toruses don't create singularities. Apart from anything else it takes vast amounts of energy to create a black hole and this is just not powerful enough to do that.

While I do have problems with the way that science is applied, this is an experiment that excites me. I also have serious reservations, as the construction of this apparatus has had a great carbon footprint. Further, this piece of equipment requires a lot of energy to run. And no matter how much of that may come from renewable sources the majority will add to the CO2 that pollutes our planet. That said, one of the rare particles that this experiment could find are particles of anti matter. Yes this is the stuff that powers star ships in Star Trek, hey I'm a geek. While other particle smashers have created these, we are only talking about one or two at a time, if the LHC were able to generate this stuff then we could see a new source of energy, of power generation. But even then I doubt that this will happen.

The reality is that this atom smasher is just a very big boys toy for a bunch of very brainy geeks and will not cause the end of the world. One thought that occurred to me though about this nonsense that has been in the press, was that the same papers that have been saying we could end the world with the LHC are also the same organs of considered thought that claim that climate change is not human induced. Now how can they claim that we could destroy the planet with the LHC but are to insignificant to be the cause of Climate Change?

Well if I am wrong and the world does go “Big Bang” on Wednesday, please don't expect me to post an apology on Thursday as I will be with the stars.