Hadron Collider smashes its first atoms
In the 1920s, developments in physics from relativity to quantum mechanics were front page news stories. Only today have scientists been able to build machines able to test theories thought up decades ago that predict what matter and energy look like in extreme states. Scientists in Switzerland came a small step closer to testing some of those theories, as the Large Hadron Collider started smashing particles yesterday.
Could this lead to a breakthroughs in our understanding of the physical world? We turn to Lisa Randall, professor of science at Harvard University and author of “Warped Passages: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe’s Hidden Dimensions,” and James Gillies, CERN spokesman, who is at the Large Hadron Collider site in Switzerland.
The World is an independent newsroom. We’re not funded by billionaires; instead, we rely on readers and listeners like you. As a listener, you’re a crucial part of our team and our global community. Your support is vital to running our nonprofit newsroom, and we can’t do this work without you. Will you support The World with a gift today? Donations made between now and Dec. 31 will be matched 1:1. Thanks for investing in our work!