Big Science and the Large Hadron Collider

Details Big Science and the Large Hadron Collider Big Science and the Large Hadron Collider

2011-06-13

arxiv.org/abs/1106.2443v3

Physics

History and Philosophy of Physics

17 pages; final version to appear in Physics in Perspective

Scientific paper

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the particle accelerator operating at CERN, is probably the most complex and ambitious scientific project ever accomplished by humanity. The sheer size of the enterprise, in terms of financial and human resources, naturally raises the question whether society should support such costly basic-research programs. I address this question here by first reviewing the process that led to the emergence of Big Science and the role of large projects in the development of science and technology. I then compare the methodologies of Small and Big Science, emphasizing their mutual linkage. Finally, after examining the cost of Big Science projects, I highlight several general aspects of their beneficial implications for society.

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