Jun 23 2006
Over 1,000 scientists from around the world meet in Edinburgh this week to discuss the latest advances in particle accelerators.
These advanced scientific research machines underpin many improvements in our quality of life, as well as helping reveal more about how the universe formed and how it functions.
The UK has invested over £1 billion in particle accelerators in the last 5 years and is one of the leading countries in the world in understanding how to design and use them.
Delegates at the 10th European Particle Accelerator conference will discuss how the world will only be able to build one of the latest linear collider machines to investigate the constituent parts of matter; how CERN’s new large hadron collider, which is due to start operating in 2007, will unveil secrets of the big bang and possibly reveal the mysterious Higgs boson; how new cancer treatments are being developed using protons produced by particle accelerators; and about a revolutionary new approach to designing intense light sources which is being developed in the UK.
Conference organiser Dr Chris Prior, of the CCLRC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, said, “The UK is a world leader in this vital field of science. Particle accelerators are a fundamental tool for modern research. They improve our quality of life by contributing to the development of new medicines and new materials. They help us understand what happened in the Big Bang and why the universe works the way it does. They benefit the economy, by forcing the pace of technology development and transferring skills and knowledge from universities to industry.”
“I’m delighted that we’re able to host this conference here in Edinburgh and show Europe, and the world, that this country is at the very cutting edge.”
The conference is being held at Edinburgh International Conference Centre from 26 – 30 June.