Tuesday, October 20, 2009
CERN's LHC: STARING GOD IN THE FACE?
Two eminent scientists have expressed the opinion that the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, in Switzerland, may be sabotaging itself from the future and apparently they have the mathematics if not to prove, then substantiate their claim.
Back in the early '70s, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke wrote a short story called 'The Nine Billion Names of God'. Set in a Nepalese monastery, high in the Himalayas, it described how the monks had been toiling for centuries to list all nine billion possible nine-letter names for their god. They believed that when the list was complete, the world would come to an end as its purpose would be over. Frustrated that the job was taking so long, the monks bought a computer to speed things up.
The two techies who installed and looked after the computer decided that, as it neared the end of its run, they would slip away from the monastery, reckoning that the monks, disappointed that the world had not come an end after all, would take out their rage on the computer and its servants.
Descending from the monastery on horseback, one of the techies glances at the clear sky at the appointed hour and observes that "one by one, and without any fuss, the stars were going out" or words to that effect - my copy of the book was lost years ago.
Although the story is a bit daft, there is a parallel between its message and what is going on at CERN today with the LHC: there may be some things either we're not meant to know, or it would be better not to know.
When the hydrogen bomb was invented, more than one nuclear physicist expressed the concern that detonating such a weapon could possibly set off a chain reaction that would ignite the entire atmosphere, bringing life on Earth to an abrupt end. Despite this possibility, the scientists went ahead with testing their new toy and now we live with a weapon that can truly bring the Sun to Earth.
Given the, to-all-intents-and-purposes, infinite size of the universe, it is reasonable to assume that there are or have been many planets capable of supporting life that evolved into technologically advanced species. How many of the black holes observed in space are actually the sites of former planets where similar experiments took place? Perhaps black holes exist as a warning to the rest of creation not to mess with things that are best left alone?
Not all bold decisions are taken wisely in the name of progress.
Is anyone listening?
Two eminent scientists have expressed the opinion that the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, in Switzerland, may be sabotaging itself from the future and apparently they have the mathematics if not to prove, then substantiate their claim.
Back in the early '70s, science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke wrote a short story called 'The Nine Billion Names of God'. Set in a Nepalese monastery, high in the Himalayas, it described how the monks had been toiling for centuries to list all nine billion possible nine-letter names for their god. They believed that when the list was complete, the world would come to an end as its purpose would be over. Frustrated that the job was taking so long, the monks bought a computer to speed things up.
The two techies who installed and looked after the computer decided that, as it neared the end of its run, they would slip away from the monastery, reckoning that the monks, disappointed that the world had not come an end after all, would take out their rage on the computer and its servants.
Descending from the monastery on horseback, one of the techies glances at the clear sky at the appointed hour and observes that "one by one, and without any fuss, the stars were going out" or words to that effect - my copy of the book was lost years ago.
Although the story is a bit daft, there is a parallel between its message and what is going on at CERN today with the LHC: there may be some things either we're not meant to know, or it would be better not to know.
When the hydrogen bomb was invented, more than one nuclear physicist expressed the concern that detonating such a weapon could possibly set off a chain reaction that would ignite the entire atmosphere, bringing life on Earth to an abrupt end. Despite this possibility, the scientists went ahead with testing their new toy and now we live with a weapon that can truly bring the Sun to Earth.
Given the, to-all-intents-and-purposes, infinite size of the universe, it is reasonable to assume that there are or have been many planets capable of supporting life that evolved into technologically advanced species. How many of the black holes observed in space are actually the sites of former planets where similar experiments took place? Perhaps black holes exist as a warning to the rest of creation not to mess with things that are best left alone?
Not all bold decisions are taken wisely in the name of progress.
Is anyone listening?
Labels: arthur c clarke, big bang, CERN, large hadron collider, LHC, nine billion names of god
