Beer and Science: Recipe for Doomsday?

The CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the largest particle accelerator in the world. Its purpose is to recreate the conditions a few microseconds after the Big Bang, among other things. Recently it was switched on, and the scientists successfully fired the two opposing beams along the 17 mile (27km) circular tunnel that houses the collider.

Video on How the CERN Large Hadron Collider (LHC) Works

Chris Mann of CERN produced this video explaining how the collider works:

Link to the above video: How the Large Hadron Collider Works.

CERN Large Hadron Collider pictures

BigPicture is featuring some incredible images of the CERN Large Hadron Collider so head over to The Big Picture to see them

End of the World?

Some scientists are convinced that there is a risk of creating a catastrophic black hole that would suck in the earth. Those dangers don’t seem unfounded in my opinion, since according to BBC news:

While working on the LHC’s predecessor, a machine called the Large-Electron Positron Collider, engineers found two beer bottles wedged into the beam pipe – a deliberate, one-off act of sabotage.

The culprits were never found.

If you agree that protons and beer don’t mix, and fear being sucked in along with the earth into a black hole, then grab a seat, and watch it live: LHC Compact Muon Solenoid Experiment Webcams.