What would happen if you stuck your hand into the Large Hadron Collider?

By at 8:20 pm Wednesday, Oct 13  

Best answer: "I don't know. Probably very bad for you. And they'd be very cross with you."

If the fear of disgruntled CERN researchers (what's the Greek "-phobia" word for that, I wonder) isn't enough to make you keep your hands to yourself, rest assured, nobody thinks such an adventure would work out for you, health-wise.

One of the scientists interviewed here mentions that particles traveling close to the speed of light start emitting synchrotron radiation, something he calls "very nasty". (Note the fun look of terror in his eyes that goes along with this pronouncement.)

And with good reason. Consider Anatoli Petrovich Bugorski, a Russian researcher who accidentally stuck his head into the proton bean of a synchrotron in 1978. The good news: He survived. The bad news: The left side of his face swelled up and peeled off. In the long term, Bugorski has had to deal with hearing loss, fatigue, facial paralysis and seizures.

Conclusion (at least, until somebody tries it on Mythbusters): Sticking any part of your body into the LHC is probably a bad idea.

Thanks to EricHarley for Submitterating!

P.S.: Only the first five minutes or so of this video are dedicated to the LHC question. After that, scientists answer questions about the multi-verse and the threat posed to us by nearby stars going supernova. Enjoy!

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Maggie Koerth-Baker

I do the Twitter, the Google+, and (to a much lesser extent) the Facebook.

Books
• Before the Lights Go Out: Conquering the Energy Crisis Before It Conquers Us, my book about the future of energy in the United States, will be published April 10th.

Upcoming Appearances
• April 2 at Skeptics in the Pub, Boston, Mass.— 7:00 pm at Tommy Doyle's in Harvard Square. Please RSVP.
•April 4 at MIT: "Shedding Light, Online", a discussion about how blogging and a dynamic audience helped shape my book, Before the Lights Go Out—4:00 pm in Maseeh Hall. Please RSVP.
• April 6 at Carnegie Mellon University: More details to come
• April 9-13 at University of Colorado, Boulder: 64th Annual Conference on World Affairs
• April 10 at Colorado State University, Fort Collins: "Putting the Fun Back in Infrastructure"—3:30 pm in the Rocky Mountain Innosphere.
• April 19 at The Bakken Museum in Minneapolis: Book Launch Party! Come enjoy snacks, a presentation by me, and some fun with the Bakken's Leyden jar.
• April 21 at Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul: Earth Day Tweetup event with Will Steger and Sean Otto—events run 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.
• May 2 at University of California, Berkeley: "Putting the Fun Back in Infrastructure"—6:00 pm, location TBA.
• May 3 at the American Institute of Architects, San Francisco Chapter—Lunchtime lecture, time and location TBA.
• May 3 at Barnes and Noble, El Cerrito, Cali.—7:00 pm.
• May 30 in New York City—Panel on local and DIY energy with the New America Foundation
• June 22-25 in Aspen, Colorado: Aspen Environment Forum
• July 5-8 at CONvergence in Minneapolis, Minn.—exact times and dates TBA

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