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Ever since its inception, the Large Hadron Collider built by CERN has been an object of much fascination. With the short term goal of the LHC being the discovery of a sub-atomic particle known as the Higgs boson (and sometimes called the God particle), the LHC is well on its way to answering questions that give us a better understanding of the particles that make up our world.
The creation of the LHC was met with some speculation on its power in creating a singularity – an example of which would be a black hole. Although scientists have denied the possibility of a full-blown black hole being created, they have admitted that smaller versions, known as worm holes, may be created. The best part is, the scientists are actually hoping this would happen.
Now, after that introduction to the LHC and the public’s reaction, you may appreciate better the body of this post – a recent set of simulated recordings from the LHC. These simulations try to capture the sound that would be generated if the Higgs boson is observed. Although the audio pieces were released more than a fortnight back, their spread on the internet is just beginning. What is fueling the spread are the sounds themselves; The simulations seem straight out of a science fiction story. Eerie and unnerving, the tracks sound similar to the many UFO related themes we’ve heard in movies.
The only available tracks on the internet are hosted by the website of the British Broadcasting Corporation. Follow the link below for a compiled set of the three soundtracks created – simulations of the energy vibrations, the harmonic signatures (the famous creepy track) and the particle’s decaying:
The tracks have been interpreted in many ways by different people. Some are debating whether there will be a message from god in the particle’s sounds. Others are asking if this denotes a significant step forward in our understand of matter at the sub-atomic level. Still others are wondering how the simulations sound so much like slowly played Pink Floyd tracks. So much for a message from god.