Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

A trip to CERN

2000; IOP Publishing; Volume: 35; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1088/0031-9120/35/4/3m1

1361-6552

Andy Ellison,

International Science and Diplomacy

Two years ago John Kinchin and myself were lucky enough to attend the Goldsmith's particle physics course. As well as many interesting lectures and activities, this course included a visit to CERN. To most physics teachers CERN is Mecca, a hallowed place where gods manipulate and manufacture matter. The experience of being there was even better. Alison Wright was an enthusiastic and very knowledgeable host who ensured the visit went smoothly and we all learned a lot. While we were there, John and I discussed the possibility of bringing a party of A-level students to see real physics in action. In February of this year we managed it. 33 students from two schools, Boston Grammar School and Northampton School for Boys, and four staff left England and caught the 2 am ferry to France. Many hours and a few `short cuts' later we arrived at our hotel in St Genis, not far from CERN. The first day was spent sight-seeing in Lausanne and Geneva. The Olympic museum in Lausanne is well worth a visit. Unfortunately, the famous fountain in Geneva was turned off, but then you can't have everything. The following morning we turned up at CERN late due to the coach's brakes being iced up! We were met once again by Alison Wright who forgave us and introduced the visit by giving an excellent talk on CERN, its background and its reason for existing. At this point we met another member of our Goldsmith's course and his students so we joined forces once again. We then piled back into the coach to re-cross the border and visit ALEPH. ALEPH is a monster of a detector 150 m below ground. We divided into four groups, each with a very able and knowledgeable guide, and toured the site. The size and scale of the detector are awesome and the students were suitably impressed. We repeated the speed of sound experiment of two years ago at the bottom of a 150 m concrete shaft (320 m s-1), posed for a group photo in front of the detector (figure 1) and returned to the main site for lunch in the canteen. Over lunch we mixed with physicists of many different nationalities and backgrounds. Figure 1. In the afternoon we visited Microcosm, the CERN visitors centre, and the LEP control room and also the SPS. Here the students learned new applications for much of the physics of standing waves and resonance that they had been taught in the classroom. Later that night, we visited a bowling alley where momentum and collision theory were put into practice. The following morning we returned to CERN and visited the large magnet testing facility. Here again physics was brought to life. We saw superconducting magnets being assembled and tested and the students gained a real appreciation of the problems and principles involved. The afternoon was rounded off by a visit to a science museum in Geneva - well worth a visit, as some of us still use some of the apparatus on display. Friday was our last full day so we visited Chamonix in the northern Alps. In the morning, we ascended the Aiguille de Midi - by cable car. Twenty minutes and 3842 m later we emerged into 50 km h-1 winds and -10 °C temperature, not counting the -10 °C wind chill factor. A crisp packet provided an unusual demonstration of the effects of air pressure (figure 2). Figure 2. The views from the summit were very spectacular though a few people experienced mild altitude sickness. That afternoon the party went to the Mer de Glace. Being inside a 3 million year-old structure moving down a mountain at 3 cm per day was an interesting experience, as was a tot of whisky with 3 million year-old water. Once again the local scenery was very photogenic and the click and whirr of cameras was a constant background noise. Saturday morning saw an early start for the long drive home. Most students - and some staff - took the opportunity to catch up on their sleep. Thanks are due to many people without whom the trip would never have taken place. Anne Craige, Stuart Williams, Christine Sutton and Andrew Morrison of PPARC, but most especially Alison Wright of CERN and John Kinchin of Boston Grammar School who did all the hard work and organization. The week gave students a unique chance to see the principles of physics being applied in many different ways and I am sure this has reinforced their knowledge and understanding. Some students also took the opportunity to practise their language skills. The only remaining question is: what next? I'll have to think about it in the summer when I have some slack time. Hmm, SLAC, that gives me an idea....