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03/01/06

Nuclear drive-in

Standing outside in the dark and the cold on the east coast of Scotland, 500 people let out a communal gasp as a huge screen was illuminated on the side of the Torness nuclear power station.

Logbook of February 2006
02/01/06

Supernova 1987A

Upon arriving for work at the laboratory of Masatoshi Koshiba at the University of Tokyo, Yoji Totsuka handed me a fax telling of a supernova in the Large Magellanic Cloud, picked up by optical telescopes.

02/01/06

On the trails of Indiana Jones

Innovative 21st century technology at Argonne National Laboratory is taking researchers back to the 19th century, the 16th century, and even the third millennium BCE.

A burst of light
02/01/06

Luminosity

Luminosity is a measure of how many particles are brought together in a certain space over a certain period of time.

02/01/06

Julian Voss-Andreae: In three dimensions

Unveiling the three-dimensional structure of proteins thrills scientists. While the potential for understanding the folding and function of enzymes is truly exciting by itself, exploring macromolecule structures also satisfies a more fundamental urge: to see the invisible.

02/01/06

Battle of the boxes

Last October, the front of the SLAC computing center looked like an elaborate children's war game in progress. Ad hoc piles of polystyrene, plastic, wooden pallets, and cardboard created an image of bunkers and trenches in a plastic post-industrial landscape.

02/01/06

Collimation

In high-energy collisions, luminosity, or beam brightness, isn't the only thing to consider; low background noise at the detectors is also important. When wayward particles bounce around inside detectors, they can mimic real collisions, muddy results, and even damage parts of the collider.

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