Topic: Astronomy Without A Telescope – Home Made Quark-Gluon Soup

[sam]

http://www.universetoday.com/2010/03/13/astronomy-without-a-telescope-home-made-quark-gluon-soup/

The most powerful operational heavy-ion collider in the world, the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) recently recorded the highest ever temperature created in an Earth-based laboratory of 4 trillion Kelvin. Achieved at the almost speed of light collision of gold ions, this resulted in the temporary existence of quark-gluon soup – something first seen at about ten to the power of minus twelve of the first second after the big bang.

[Clive]

something first seen at about ten to the power of minus twelve of the first second after the big bang.

Bloody hell!  That's incredible. I may use that in my next bulletin.   

[sam]

its pretty cool, but not really new news.. if that makes sense. This is where CERN = astronomy... and why we need them, otherwise particle physics... pah!

[Clive]

We get a lot of particle physics talks from Swansea University because we are quite near.  We love that stuff!   

[sam]

Swansea do particle physics? 

[Rik]

No, but they talk about it a lot.

[Clive]

   Swansea has a fine Particle Physics department. Ian Halliday, boss of PPARC brought in lots of top guys from CERN to staff it.   

[sam]

oh good to see people abusing power, eh... :p

oh and its STFC now... sorry should that be "people with no money" 

[Clive]

oh and its STFC now...

Yes,all Halliday's work.  He hates astronomers because he's a particle physicist himself.  That's why there no funding for astronomy. 

[sam]

 

... just cause we are the better science.

[Clive]

He twice came to our society to give talks on particle physics but each time just gave us a lecture on why funding for UK astronomy should be withdrawn.  Just what we needed to hear!     No wonder he wanted that job at PPARC.

[sam]

argh!

[Rodders]

Bloody Astronomy without a bloody telescope.  I've just spent several hours trying to get Starry Night 6 CSAP to co-operate with Windows 7.  After jumping through more hoops than a hoopery, I eventually succeeded only by resorting to harsh language.  I'm now going out into the back garden - to scream.

[Simon]

Was it worth it? 

[Rodders]

Of course it is!  I paid around seven or eight quid in Lidl's for it a couple of years ago and wouldn't want to risk a serious shoeing by turfing her off the laptop whenever I want to check whether it's dark.