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The Best Press Conference I Have Ever Attended

I have never been so enthralled to sit among scientists from CERN. Likewise I have never seen Powerpoint slides that discussed matters of importance, turning all other worldly man-made events into trivial things. The Powerpoint presentation I witnessed was showing the history of the universe, the concept of the time-space continuum, and folding space.

It seems that the Department of Science and Technology has finally made contact with CERN, the center of all scientific research in the world. CERN. What’s that?

In layman terms, CERN is the brothel of physics, where you will find a lot of banging.

Particle banging to be exact. In Geneva.

CERN houses the Large Hadron Collider, the biggest particle accelerator known to man. If the world comes to an end, it won’t be surprising that the source of destruction will have to do with the LHC.

CERN is the source of all evil, as Dan Brown writes in Angels and Demons. When asked to comment, the two physicists nonchalantly answered that CERN is seen as evil because of its production of anti-matter. The collision of matter with anti-matter is often used as a dump explanation for the powering of Star ships, as is seen in the Star Trek series. However, a CERN scientist was actually quoted to say that if we were to combine all the anti-matter we’ve ever produced and inject it with matter, the total output energy would only equal enough to power a light bulb (source). Dan Brown is wrong.

CERN is the Mecca of Physics. More than half of the world’s physicists have made a pilgrimage to Geneva to conduct experiments. The LHC’s purpose is to prove the existence of the Higgs Boson.

In truth, I prepared all night to ask one question alone. My question was “the LHC was built for the discovery of the Higgs Boson. What is the progress of this discovery and what are the implications to mankind?”

I got an (paraphrased) answer. “You are correct. The LHC’s primary reason for existence is for the Higgs Boson particle. It has not yet been discovered. The discovery of the Higgs doesn’t have one true value but its implications are great. It is like how the electron was discovered about 100 years ago — the advances that were made to society were immense.”

The Higgs Boson’s discovery will help explain the origins of mass.

CERN is here to work together with the DOST to find opportunities where synergies can be made. Finally.

By Jayvee Fernandez

Jayvee Fernandez is a tech enthusiast, EAN certified SCUBA Diver and underwater photographer based in Metro Manila, Philippines. His photos and videos have appeared in various international and local publications including Random House Germany, Discovery Channel Canada, and CNN.

11 replies on “The Best Press Conference I Have Ever Attended”

Fascinating stuff. Interesting how science empowers us with the tools to understand the secrets of the cosmos, while reminding and humbling us that we’re all at the mercy of particles we can’t even see…

ooohh!! *geek envy*

I’m confident the LHC would find the Higgs boson a.k.a. the God particle and hopefully a few more hypothetical particles down the road.

I heard that Mel & Joey also paid a visit to CERN a while back- does that mean Philippine S&T is actually taking off? If yes, then its great news.

Why ask something you can just wikipedia. You could’ve asked something more controversial. Is this knowledge really worth the destruction of all mankind?

Anyway, Higgs Boson is interesting as it’s supposed (theoretically) to have no smaller particles. It’s the exact definition of Atom… the final substance that cannot be broken down into parts (that’s why they call it God particle). Of course, later, Atoms are proven to be breakable and indeed have parts. Maybe this “God particle” business is being used to justify the very heavy costs of research.

This is really heavy quantum physics stuff, but once proven to exist will be in text books in no time at all.

i am so facsinated with the vast cosmos and its quantum components i have been lately so immersed in reading books about astrophysics. yet i wonder why am i not in this conference. to work in both NASA and CERN has been my life-long dream. oh well….

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