How does a particle accelerator work?

Please watch the following:



and

Your life and high energy physics

Today, you were asked to work on the self-paced notes from Particleadventure.org Now that you have done that, I want you to reflect for a moment on the world you live in. How does research like this impact your daily life? Is it the research that is important, or the tools they discover along the way to help do that job? Explain your answer in 1-2 paragraphs in the comments section.

Why Does All This Matter?

Science study of radioactivity extends to biology, medicine, and the universe being created. It's amazing what we are finding out, but even more questions remain unanswered about those little particles inside the nucleus.

What are you thinking about now?

Diggin up Uranium

Are the following useful or non-useful ways to use radioactivity? Why do you think so?

1. irradiating food like spinach
   
2. PETscans
   
3. smoke detectors
   
4. nuclear power plants
   
5. studying the origin of the universe