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NOVA scienceNOW: CERN
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Program Overview
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The world's largest
particle accelerator, slated to go online in 2008, will attempt to create
particles that have never been seen before by colliding protons together at
near the speed of light. Such a discovery would help physicists better
understand the basic building blocks of matter and answer key questions in the
field of particle physics.
This NOVA scienceNOW segment:
introduces the European Council
for Nuclear Research's particle accelerator, the world's largest
and most powerful. The name CERN is an acronym derived from the French name for
the council—Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire. explains that CERN's particle accelerator
uses powerful magnets to accelerate protons around a 16-mile-long track. Each
time round, the protons get a little push from the magnetic field, which
accelerates them, until eventually they are traveling at nearly the speed of
light. describes how new particles can
be made by causing two beams of protons to collide. The collision's
energy is forceful enough to break protons into more fundamental particles. shows how an array of detectors
measures the tracks of particles resulting from such collisions. By analyzing
these tracks, scientists can tell if a collision created a new particle. states that scientists have already
discovered a number of subatomic particles, which are the basis of the Standard
Model—a theoretical model that gives us the best picture of what matter
is made of. affirms that the Standard Model is
incomplete and that scientists hope the CERN experiments will reveal new
particles and yield new insights into subatomic structure. details
the challenge of processing the data generated by the 400 million proton
collisions that will occur each second. After operating for a year, these data
will total 10 times the amount of data that is currently stored on the World
Wide Web. discusses
a key question scientists hope to solve: why so many particles have mass,
since, according to physicists, mass is not something that is predicted by
theory. presents
the leading idea for explaining mass—the Higgs field—a field
pervading all of space that fundamental particles interact with to gain their
mass.
Taping Rights: Can be used up to one year after the program is taped off the air.
Web Sites
Evolution Library: Permian-Triassic Extinction
www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/03/2/l_032_02.html
Presents a short video segment in which rock layers laid down during the
Permian and Triassic periods are analyzed.
NOVA scienceNOW
http://www.pbs.org/nova/sciencenow/3410/02.html
Offers CERN-related resources,
including additional activities, streamed video, and reports by experts.
Official CERN Website
http://public.web.cern.ch/Public/Welcome.html
A complete introduction of the world's largest
particle physics laboratory that includes a history, photographs, current news;
as well as resources for teachers, students, and the general public.
Exploratorium Page on CERN
http://www.exploratorium.edu/origins/cern/
The
Exploratorium tours CERN's particle accelerators, meets the scientists, and
webcasts from inside the Antiproton Decelerator.
The Particle Adventure
http://www.particleadventure.org/
Interactive tour of the inner
workings of the atom and the tools for discovery, with student art, humor,
quizzes.
Books
The Anniversary of CERN's Discoveries and a Look into the Future
by Roger Cashmore, Luciano Maiani, Jean-Pierre Revol. Springer, 2004.
The articles
collected in this book have been written by distinguished physicists who
contributed in a crucial way to the developments in particle physics made
possible by CERN.
Atoms & Molecules: Building Blocks of the Universe
(Exploring Science)
By Darlene R. Stille. Compass Point
Books, 2007.
Learn about
the discoveries of physicists and chemists while you explore the invisible
world of atoms and molecules.
Atoms and Molecules (Usborne Understanding Science)
By Roxbee Cox. Usborne Publishing
Limted, 1993.
This book reveals the inner
workings of the atom and includes the background to some historic discoveries
and inventions, such as the atom bomb.
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