from the I-found-2-coins-and-a-boiled-sweet dept.
If you're not too busy this weekend, why not sit down on your sofa and try to find a Higgs Boson or dark matter ?
The idea's feasible because CERN yesterday released data generated by the the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS). “one of two large general-purpose particle physics detectors” at the Large Hadron Collider. CERN says the CMS' goal is “to investigate a wide range of physics, including properties of the recently discovered Higgs boson as well as searches for extra dimensions and particles that could make up dark matter.”
It's rather complex. CERN says “it takes CMS scientists working in groups and relying upon each others’ expertise many months or even years to perform a single analysis that must then be scrutinized by the whole collaboration before a scientific paper can be published.
The data is a little old: (recorded in 2010) http://opendata.cern.ch/collection/CMS-Derived-Datasets
The CMS team has prepared tools ( http://opendata.cern.ch/collection/CMS-Tools ) to help you with your exploration, plus a virtual machine ( http://opendata.cern.ch/record/250 ) in the notionally portable .OVA format (and recommends VirtualBox to run it).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @12:22PM
Might have a good chance with my sofa. I haven't run the vacuum cleaner over it for two months.
Unfortunately, I don't have time to help. Because I will be in the other room, where my computer is, instead of wasting time on the sofa.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday November 21 2014, @12:36PM
Surely there will be speck of dark matter on it, why don't you move the computer there and use it to start looking for them?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by GreatAuntAnesthesia on Friday November 21 2014, @12:54PM
Depends what colour the sofa is. If it's a pale colour, maybe white or cream, then the dark matter should be relatively easy to find. However if it's one of those 80s-style black executive sofas then you'll have a hell of a job.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday November 21 2014, @02:50PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday November 21 2014, @07:22PM
Regardless of the colour, you just don't want to find out the nature of the matter on the sofa, especially if the computer is nearby...
(Score: 2) by ilPapa on Friday November 21 2014, @01:17PM
I found a 1906 Indian Head penny in my sofa once, so chances are pretty good Higgs boson is in there too.
As long as Higgs doesn't expect me to give it back.
You are still welcome on my lawn.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @02:36PM
If you just copy-and-paste text from one of your articles, and even if it is the only text in your submission, could you please wrap it in blockquotes? In general I like the articles you submit, but at times I find it confusing as to what or whose voice is in the summary.
(Score: 3, Informative) by janrinok on Friday November 21 2014, @02:40PM
I'll have to take a hit for this as well - after all, I am the editor. I should have picked it up.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @03:16PM
I thought everybody just mined Twatcoin now.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @03:33PM
Yo Mama is so fat, when she sits in her chair, her butt produces detectable Higg's particles. Is that it?
(Score: 2) by marcello_dl on Friday November 21 2014, @07:59PM
How on earth could you not connect "yo momma" joke with "dark matter" instead?
- I didn't find anything but your momma had better luck, seen her on the sofa busy jerking some dark matter.
- Wait, I found something. Apparently the undiscovered matter making up 85% of the known universe's mass was your mom.
There must be some Trolling 101 online course, go for it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @08:34PM
Not offensive enough:
Yo Mama's so fat the universe tilts when she flushes dark matter.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 21 2014, @08:36PM
http://amultiverse.com/comic/2012/07/09/boson-buddies/ [amultiverse.com]
Never actually expected that one to be obligatory.