What Can IT Learn From The Large Hadron Collider?
The tests involved sending a near-light speed beam of subatomic particles around the LHC, a 16.7 mile-long ring-shaped tunnel situated on the France-Swiss border. In a few weeks, the scientists will use the LHC to crash particles together with such force that it'll hopefully provide them with a glimpse into the origins of matter and shed light on the unanswered questions of physics.
"It's a fantastic moment...we can now look forward to a new era of understanding about the origins and evolution of the universe," said LHC project leader Lyn Evans, in a statement.
IT solution providers believe the LHC has the potential to not only usher the physics community into a new era, but to also eventually have beneficial effects on the pace of IT industry advancement.
"It may only require the confirmation of a single, basic aspect of our understanding of the universe to unlock a broad group of elusive mysteries," said Joe Bardwell, president and chief scientist of Connect802, a solution provider in San Ramon, Calif.
The LHC is an example of fundamental research that's crucial to driving technology forward, and it couldn't come a minute too soon, according to Dale Mitchell, general manager of Data Processing Sciences, a Cincinnati, Ohio-based solution provider.
"Sub-atomic research is vital to continued technology development. The only other research as important in my mind is biotech," said Mitchell. "Until we, as a society, can find a way to break the speed of light, we've about reached our limit in travel and computing."
Marc Harrison, president of Silicon East, a solution provider in Manalapan, N.J., says what physicists are doing today will affect the semiconductor fabrication process in 10 to 20 years.
"Without a doubt, the increased understanding of particle physics gained through the LHC will lead to technology spin-offs that will affect our industry in years to come," Harrison said.