Smith, however, summarizes the likelihood of such an end for the planet in one word: “Not.” He says three reasons assure the safety of the world and humanity from the LHC. First, the size of these possible black holes would be microscopic. “They’d be the size of mosquitoes! They’d have no way of attracting mass,” and would evaporate almost immediately.

“Second, what [the collisions] make doesn’t stay there,” Smith says. “People think it’s like marbles, and these particles sit there after the collisions, but no. … Whatever you make goes flying out and leaves the earth like that!”

“Finally,” he says, “if this is dangerous, we wouldn’t be here.” These kinds of energies and interactions happen regularly in deep space and so far with no fatal consequences. The odds look good.

Understanding its purpose

“Science journalism has a tendency to … tell a story,” says John Rudolph, UW-Madison professor of history of science. “Mundane, routine science isn’t all that exciting, so a discovery or human interest or a destruction-of-the-world” angle naturally makes the story a better seller. “It’s not journalists’ fault, but in a way … you’d get a distorted view” if that was your only exposure to science.

“I think [the public] shouldn’t have to work very hard to understand these things, but we have to work hard to convey it,” Wu says of scientists’ jobs to educate the public. “And we’re not so good at it so far.”

For instance, many people do not understand the need for basic research, the kind without specific applications or practical uses. But, as both Wu and Smith point out, technologies as diverse as X-rays, cell phones and laser eye surgery all resulted from such basic research. All were by accident, and all were unforeseeable. While the goal of the LHC is simply to increase basic knowledge, it is likely we will be able to use that knowledge to develop new technology.

A basic curiosity of the world is paramount, Wu says. “I think we [help] inspire the general public to question, ‘What’s surrounding you?’” That is all the LHC does, though at a more basic level than most care to question. The fact that not everyone understands this just demonstrates the work left to do by scientists.

Wu emphasizes the unusual strength and support on the UW-Madison campus for basic research, coming from the chancellor, provost and dean of graduate students. Such support clearly paid off, since UW-Madison is the only American university invited to work on two projects at the LHC, the CMS and ATLAS detectors.

“This university’s really fantastic in supporting research,” she says. “And I’ve really benefited from the encouragement and freedom they give us.”

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