The whole reason Brian Cox invited me to CERN and to visit the Large Hadron Collider was to interview me for a podcast. Over the past few months he has been bringing people with different backgrounds to the LHC to get their impressions, and see it through their eyes. I was privileged to be among the last who got to go down underground before they turn the machine on!
So the interview Brian and I did while standing in front of CMS is now online. You can grab it directly here, or listen to it in context on the CERNPodcast page (with some cool photos Gia took). I had a lot of fun talking with Brian; we chatted over the physics of the LHC, and then the antiscience of people trying to shut it down, afraid it’ll create a black hole or two.
After listening to it, I think this is actually one of my better interviews, so I urge everyone to give it a listen. And if you haven’t, check out the video I took of LHC as well!
I have to add that Brian even invited over and interviewed John Barrowman — Capt. Jack Harkness from Doctor Who and Torchwood! In fact, that interview is pretty funny, if you know Barrowman and Harkness… it gets a bit randy, too. And there’s video as well.
May 2nd, 2008 at 11:32 am
Good stuff! It’ll take me some time to watch it all though.
On a side note, maybe you can use the Hadron Collider against PZ Myers in the blog war you have going with him!
(No, I’m not the one who made it)…
May 2nd, 2008 at 11:48 am
Dude,
Lose the ballcap under the hardhat look
May 2nd, 2008 at 12:38 pm
What’s with all the “anti-science” propoganda? Your move-along-nothing-to-see-here attitude is condesending.
Just because we are worried that the Standard Model doesn’t work and that want to punch a hole in the universe (where “the centre is everywhere”) to find out what is going on?
Your Jedi Mind tricks only work on the weak minded.
May 2nd, 2008 at 12:43 pm
I’ve found more often that my arguments don’t work on the weak-minded. Oh well.
“Move along” attitude? That’s funny, if not utterly wrong. I am very careful to make my arguments based on evidence such as math, physics, observations, logic, rationality, and a firm but (depending on evidence) malleable sense of what is real.
But golly, other than that…
May 2nd, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Reynold, I saw that, and in fact it’s already blogged.
May 2nd, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Good stuff! Thanks for sharing, as always! The pictures are very neat, too — man, that is one cool looking piece of machinery.
May 2nd, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Great podcast! I always have trouble explaining the justification for spending money on science. And you explained it very very well and relatable to all.
Thank you.
May 2nd, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Fascinating interview. Completely agree with “Yishai” when it comes to spending money on science. Our future, if not personal but of our descendants completely depends on it. Much of our nowadays misfortunes are consequences of short term vision.
Keep on with the great work of enlightening our knowledge and the great opportunities it may open in the future.
May 2nd, 2008 at 4:30 pm
I knew that; I just figured you could use the Hadron Collider as a weapon.
Ehmmm, yeah.
May 3rd, 2008 at 3:23 am
Thanks Phil, both podcasts were very cool.
May 3rd, 2008 at 6:38 am
Hey! What is Chris Morris doing in the background of that second CERN Podcast photo?
Great and very interesting interview!
May 4th, 2008 at 8:03 pm
Caught a Horizon doco this weekend on SBS in Oz – The Six Billion Dollar Machine. All about the LHC and the search for the Higgs thingy and the birth of the Universe. Brian Cox was one of the talking heads. Quite an enjoyable piece of television.