simple enough?

i have to tell you my latest obsession...particle physics. i know it sounds little too geeky, but hey! to each is own. i am inspired by this book i am reading "god particle" by leon lederman. if you happen to have read "angels and demons", this may book may actually ring a bell.

well, the book mainly aims to explain in the simplest manner the nature of the universe by using breakthroughs in particle physics. lederman went to great lengths to idiot-proof the book. lederman, by the way is a leading authority on the subject having been director of fermilab (the leading institution on particle physics, along with CERN) and a nobel laureate himself.

the book tells of interesting facts that can make you realize how simple the world can be if not for the complexity of "outside forces." for instance, did you know that all matter are primarily made up of 12 kinds of particles (6 quarks, 6 leptons) and 4 forces? yup, all those stuff that you see...from the stars in the sky, to the beautiful beaches of galera and yes, even a friend having his "happy" moment in the highlands of baguio. they are nothing but a collection of 12 particles held together by 4 forces. simple enough, no?

here's another interesting fact, the biggest particle accelerator built to date is the one in fermilab (4 miles around!). i don't know if the supercondensing super collider has been commissioned yet because if it is, it would be the largest. this particle accelerator is also a project of fermilab. anyways, inside the particle accelerator, particles such as protons are being collided with each other using tremendous amount of energy that amounts to US$ 1M of electricity bill per year. the temperature inside the main core of the accelerator reaches a staggering 10,000 trillion degrees above absolute zero. the last time this temperature was reached was a few microseconds after the bigbang! can you imagine simulating the bigbang in a lab? hence my latest fascination.

i have told friends that i now want to become a physicist (although i am quite certain that i want to enter law school soon). they think i am insane...then maybe i am. at least i'm not alone (i hope).

cryola popcorn smirks @ 11:32 AM