September Swansea Science Café: The Large Hadron Collider at CERN

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The Swansea Science Café offers opportunities for anyone to find out more about new, exciting and topical areas of science. Designed to be informal and entertaining, entry is free and talks start at 7:30pm at the Dylan Thomas Centre.

Dr Lyn Evans2 Title: The Large Hadron Collider at CERN

Speaker: Professor Lyn Evans (pictured), CERN – the European Organisation for Nuclear Research

Date: Wednesday 26th September

Time: Starts at 7.30pm, ends at 9pm approx

Venue: The Dylan Thomas Centre, Somerset Place, Swansea

Admission: Free, all welcome

Further information: Online at http://www.swansea.ac.uk/science/swanseasciencecafe/, or email: c.allton@swansea.ac.uk / e.c.pope@swansea.ac.uk.

Event summary:

LHC CERN The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN produces proton-proton collisions at the highest energies yet studied. These create, in a very small region, the conditions of the early universe, a billionth of a second after the ‘Big Bang’!

The LHC is truly massive. It is built in a 27km circular tunnel near Geneva in Switzerland and the detectors which 'take photographs' of the proton collisions are the size of a six storey building.

Professor Lyn Evans, Physics graduate and Honorary Fellow of Swansea University, was the Project Leader of the LHC during its construction and commissioning stage and will discuss the massive feat of engineering and physics which was involved in its design, building and operation.

About Science Café Wales:

Each month, a leading expert in their field will give a brief introductory talk followed by a friendly informal chat. You can sit back, relax with a drink and listen or get involved in the discussion and debate.The Science Café organisers are committed to promoting public engagement with science and to making science accountable.

Science Café Wales are held in casual settings in Cardiff, Swansea and Bangor. They are informal and accessible and entrance is entirely free. They usually start with a short talk from the speaker, usually a scientist or writer, followed by a quick break and then an hour or so of discussion afterwards.

Previous topics have included dark matter, the common cold, Dr Who, the Big Bang and alternative therapies.

The first Cafes Scientifiques in the UK were held in Leeds in 1998. From there cafés gradually spread across the country.

Currently, some 40 or so cafés meet regularly to hear scientists or writers on science talk about their work and discuss it with diverse audiences.