Humankind often looks to the past to understand the future. We look at our own history as a people, using social, political, economic, religious, ethnic and scientific scopes. We look at the history of the biological world, with all of the different organisms that inhabit planet Earth. And we look at the history of the Earth itself, with all of the geological and physical properties that allow for life to occur.
But what about the history of the universe?
Enter the Large Hadron Collider, a project of epic proportions that has brought together the finest particle physicists in the world to uncover mysteries of the known universe - and members of the UW-Madison physics community have joined the ranks.
The LHC is an enormous, circular particle collider scientists and engineers put together underground in Europe, circling across the Franco-Swiss border. The LHC lies on the campus of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), an institution that has brought Europe to the forefront of the study of particle physics.
UW physics professor Wesley Smith leads part of the project. Smith and others lead a team of more than 2,000 researchers who construct, repair, regulate and run the functions of a part of the LHC called the Compact Muon Solenoid.
Around 30 members of the UW-Madison community work on the CMS - a mix of engineers, technicians and graduate students. UW-Madison also has 10 people working at CERN itself.
Scientists from 38 countries work on the LHC, from the United States and Mexico to Uzbekistan and Russia, and as far east as China, India and New Zealand. UW-Madison has joined a truly global effort.
To understand the purpose of this effort, one must understand the physics behind it.
In what physicists call the Standard Model, four forces inhabit the known universe: gravity, electromagnetic force and two forces dubbed the strong"" force and the ""weak"" force.
Physicists theorize that at one point early in the history of the universe, these forces were all the same force - that is, they were symmetrical. At some point shortly after the big bang (the famed starting point of the universe), this one force became asymmetrical, leading to the development of the four forces.
Why is this important? The strong force in particular holds together the particles that make up the nucleus inside atoms, which make up the elements that exist in nature. And since our bodies are made up of elements like carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen, life could not exist if not for this strong force holding the subatomic particles together.
Physicists further theorize that something called the Higgs boson particle, named after the physicist who proposed it, may reveal clues about the diversion of forces in the universe. It is believed this Higgs boson particle is created through the collision of protons.
Here is where the LHC comes in, colliding protons to recreate the conditions occurring when Higgs boson particles are formed. If any are created through these collisions, then the current theory will be supported; if not, then physicists will have to look elsewhere and reformulate their theories.
Four checkpoints on the LHC measure particle collisions. The two main beam crossing points are the CMS and another checkpoint called A Toroidal LHC ApparatuS (ATLAS).
These complicated names represent different magnetic fields that check for different types of particles.
While running, billions of proton collisions occur in the LHC every second. Smith's crew on the CMS has the responsibility of using their technology to decipher which collisions may prove relevant to the project's goals. They search for the patterns that may lead to the creation of the Higgs boson particle.
""From '94 until the present, I've been in charge of what's called the 'trigger system,'"" Smith said. ""We analyze those patterns, turn them into digital data and reconstruct what happens in those collisions.""
The technology for this project is extraordinarily advanced, far beyond the processing power of any computer out there. And since the particle collisions occur so rapidly, Smith's crew uses the technology to organize and process the relentless collisions in search of the desired results, like a bucket brigade passing information.
""The key piece of evidence [will be] actually seeing the mechanism itself,"" he said, meaning the creation of the Higgs boson particle, which has never before been directly observed.
Smith also commented on the daunting power of the CMS detector. ""It's 100,000 times the strength of the Earth's magnetic field,"" he said.
Daniel Lecoanet, UW third-year undergraduate and physics student, further explained the efforts of the LHC project and its crew. (Lecoanet does not work on the project, but is familiar with the science involved.)
""By colliding things at higher and higher energies, we get a closer view of the fundamental interactions that are occurring,"" he said.
Recently, scientists delayed the LHC's startup for six months after an electrical fault in some of its magnets led to a liquid helium leak and extensive, costly repairs. Physicists and other organizers must always be cautious with worker safety, as well as the stability of the apparatus amid the cold European winter. And those involved with the LHC have also had to face general skepticism of the LHC's power, inciting concern toward this atom smasher's effect on Earth.
Despite the setback, Smith and his colleagues remain focused on their goal.
""The United States is falling behind in science and technology,"" he said. ""We really had to push the technology in many, many areas.""
Smith further commented on the joy and camaraderie of working with colleagues from around the world and the relationships that have developed out of their work. Smith noted how some of the same people have been working on the project now for over two decades.
""It's been very rewarding to watch these systems work together,"" he said.
Lecoanet also commented on the anticipation of the scientific community as to the results of the LHC project as a whole.
""Students right now are really excited, because this is stuff that's going to be uncovered when we're still in school, and it's brand new science that we have a chance to participate in,"" he said.
""I predict they'll find a Higgs boson and nothing else,"" he added, recognizing the extreme variances that may occur in the results.
Lecoanet, though, did not miss the overall purpose of the project in his evaluations.
""It's exciting to be part of a project that furthers the scientific understanding of humanity,"" he said.
