Saturday, February 05, 2005

The Introductions

"Physics, meet Metaphysics...
Metaphysics... This is Physics.
Physics and Metaphysics... meet Art."


"Nature is much smarter than us. It might come up with a real surprise and that would be much more interesting - much more satisfying." Professor Jim Virdee, Imperial College London
"The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a powerful and impossibly complicated machine that will smash particles together at super-fast speeds in a bid to unlock the secrets of the Universe.

'New physics'
By recreating the searing-hot conditions fractions of a second after the Big Bang, scientists hope to see new physics, discover the sought-after "God particle", uncover new dimensions and even generate mini-black holes."
My first thought upon finding this article from the BBC, Underground search for 'God particle', was "waaaay coooool!" My next thought was, "why, oh why does the Higgs boson have to be nicknamed the 'God Particle'?" I know they explain it all in the article, but I also KNOW what the fundie-tics are going to say. They're already saying it. There are books out. The "God Module" in human DNA. Please. Didn't we just read something at ASZ about the "New Physics" that the cultists get all warm and runny about? their versions of physics, geology, biology and whatever else they can, in order to turn the clock back to the year 1350... Oh yeah. That was me, HERE.

Anywho... I'll finish this back at my first thought. Super-colliders are way cool. And yes. I am a physics groupie who can barely speak the language, although I read and read. Physicists are some of my few heartthrobs. Save your big muscles, guys. Big brains is where it's at. I had the tour of the Fermi Lab in N. Illinois years ago. I hope they crack "the secret of the Uni-verse" soon, so sane people can someday hope to get off this rock. The Mothership appears to have abandonned us.

"Imagine there's no heaven.
It's easy if you try.


Bonus Link: Art and Physics, by Leonard Shlain