Antimatter goes to the movies

Fred, Chicago, Illinois — Fri, 15 May 2009 02:02:59 GMT

It has been recently discovered that bombarding gold with laser light produces abundant positrons. Could this be the beginning of an anti-matter gun?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Gilbert Nelson — Fri, 15 May 2009 02:11:28 GMT

Should positrons be used on optimists and Negatrons(?)
on pessimists?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Patrick Johnson — Fri, 15 May 2009 04:21:34 GMT

All the money being poured into this and we get what exactly? Only useful thing I saw mentioned was dealing with medicine and it would be too expensive anyway. Doesnt seem like a good use of limited resources.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Hal Byron Becker, Phoenix, Arizona — Fri, 15 May 2009 04:52:00 GMT

While we're on this topic ...

Physicists have been searching for the graviton for decades. Lately, they have also been searching for the source of energy behind the universe's accelerating expansion. What if Mother Nature, in her final and finest irony, made the yet to be discovered graviton and its anti-particle mutually repellant, instead of mutually attractive?

Antimatter goes to the movies

bARRETT — Fri, 15 May 2009 07:17:35 GMT

Optomists and Negatrons...are they Transformers? XD

Antimatter goes to the movies

Bill Harrison, Point Clear, Alabama — Fri, 15 May 2009 08:04:15 GMT

Gilbert, Positrons and negatrons should be used on Formosa Termites and Point Clear Mosquitos (I swear they're as big as chickens)

Antimatter goes to the movies

Frank Klepeiss — Fri, 15 May 2009 11:40:03 GMT

You really have to wonder about the CERN supercollider the boondoggle that has been constructed in switzerland at a cost of tens of billions of dollars. Austria a long time supporter of the project has recently pulled out very little news has been reported lately does anybody know whats going on over there?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Sonny Syde, Mid-America, USA — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:40:48 GMT

Gil,

I would think it would be more beneficial to use the positrons on the pessimists and the negatrons on the optimists to even them out a bit.

But seriously, you can bet your money that somewhere, some nut-job is trying to figure out a way to make an antimatter bomb right now. The odds against his success are comforting, but the mere idea that he's out there trying is very troubling.

Have a nice day.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Eric, Salinas, CA — Fri, 15 May 2009 13:16:30 GMT

Excellent article Alan! Nice work on debunking that anitmatter bombs are a threat when antimatter is so expensive to produce. I sure am looking forward to seeing the LHC work later this summer. To think some idiot high school teacher is the one whining about stopping the LHC experiments, I saw him on The Daily Show and they exposed him for the fraud he is. The nut shouldn't be allowed to teach kindergarden science much less high school science.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Yellowhawk Forestfire, black foot tribe, arizona — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:00:48 GMT

blah blah blah....thats all i hear
why dont we focus on preparing for whats going to happen in 2012?

Antimatter goes to the movies

jason lalime — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:18:17 GMT

So, is the glass half full of positrons or negitrons?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Adept Havelock — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:27:05 GMT

I remember I used to have a Negatron toy. It would change into a 57' Buick Roadmaster. :p

Antimatter goes to the movies

marv, Pinetop, Az — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:28:24 GMT

where does the antimatter go, when as the article states it blips out of existence, there has to be more to it. What is it good for?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Geekboi — Fri, 15 May 2009 15:03:00 GMT

Anti-protons should be used to annihilate a particle that is a detriment to science: the Moron.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Rex, Rockville, MD — Fri, 15 May 2009 15:09:11 GMT

Err... spoiler alert?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Eddie, Redlands, CA — Fri, 15 May 2009 15:24:57 GMT

all that billions of money and we still can not stop hunger in this modern world. no way to get rid of or be resistant to all viruses that could wipe out human beings.

also "The better news is that the antimatter being made at Europe's CERN physics lab is used for good, not for evil." how do you know for sure?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Not Completely Uneducated — Fri, 15 May 2009 15:27:20 GMT

Sigh. "Negatrons" are called electrons.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Chris — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:00:52 GMT

when antimatter and matter annihilate each other, the matter is 100% converted into energy, primarilly visible light, heat, RF, and mostly gamma rays. When an antiatom "winks out" it does so by annihilating an atom of regular matter following Einstein's E=MC2. Where the "E" consists of the above mentioned photons. (light, RF, gamma, etc).

Antimatter goes to the movies

some guy, Atlanta Georgia — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:06:27 GMT

As far as we know, there's nothing more to it. At that scale matter blips and out of existance constantly.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Mark M, Seattle WA — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:20:18 GMT

marv, Pinetop Az...

The antimatter and matter react and are converted entirely to energy. A whole lot of energy. E=mc^2. They do indeed "blip out of existence" as matter -- but a whole bunch of energy "blips into existence."

Antimatter goes to the movies

Jess Denver — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:23:03 GMT

Marv, the antimatter is the reverse of regular matter; therefore, when it collides with matter--any matter, even air--it explodes.

Antimatter goes to the movies

RT, Wichita — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:33:58 GMT

Antimatter and matter collide and are obliterated to create photons...some of which are gamma rays. This is the source of energy in fusion.

I know these physicists are extremely brilliant, but I don't think they view the universe clearly. Our scope of the cosmos is far too small to formulate a theory on the origin of...everything. I'm still a steady state guy, and I think eventually we will know enough to dubunk the big bang and even relativity, or adjust it atleast. All we know is that our planet is spinning around the sun with tremendous velocity, which is spinning around the galaxy at tremendous velocity, and for some reason we believe our galaxy is aimlessly flying away from the center of the universe? My meager intelligence allows me to be simplistic here, and assume that the galaxy is also spinning around a center point within the "universe". And am I going to assume that's as big as it gets? Why, because that's the extent of our observable cosmos? And then what is our total velocity? To me it all adds up to all of existence itself being quantized by energy level, just as particles themselves are.

One thing is for certain; the more we know, the more we realize we don't know.

Antimatter goes to the movies

chouse — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:42:19 GMT

>Austria a long time supporter of the project has
>recently pulled out

Austria was hardly a major contributor to the project. Many small companies in the US spend more on shipping costs annually than Austria contributed to CERN.

No big loss financially, although it is unfortunate that any partner would walk away from such important research.

Some people have commented on "what good is this research".

Do you want a car that can fly?

Do you want the possibility of discovering new ways to produce energy that don't pollute?

If so, then you need to support research like this.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Kevin, Philadelphia, PA — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:46:36 GMT

Marv,

It becomes energy, as does whatever it annhilates. Read up on the Law of Conservation of Matter.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Bo Brock, Iowa — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:50:25 GMT

Hey Alan, your article was featured on 3 Quarks, so I saw the link there before I read your site for the day. Very good as usual.

[ALAN ADDS: Cool, thanks for the good word and all the best to the family!]

Antimatter goes to the movies

Jeff, Madison, WI — Fri, 15 May 2009 17:09:05 GMT

Yellowhawk, what is going to happen in 2012? Did I miss something?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Glen — Fri, 15 May 2009 17:18:32 GMT

YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK:

"This is why antimatter is considered the most expensive material on Earth. A commonly quoted figure is that it costs $1.75 quadrillion dollars per ounce."

YOU KEEP DABBLING IN GOD'S WORK (things that should be off-limits), and don't be surprised when you find yourself KNOCKING OFF THE POLARITY (by a degree of two) OF THE SPIN OFF THE EARTH AND THEREBY WIPING THE WHOLE OF MANKIND OUT OF EXISTANCE! Like the dinosaurs. This precise spin is crucial to maintaining life as we know it on Earth. You foolish, foolish people are tinkering with things that you have no business in. Instead, the government is raising all of our taxes during a time of recession to pay for this money-wasting project. The potential (and, very real) dangers of this type of science far outweigh the benefits. STOP USING OUR TAXES TO PAY FOR THIS "JUNK SCIENCE"!!!!!!!

Antimatter goes to the movies

Tim Hyatt, Charleston WV — Fri, 15 May 2009 18:05:36 GMT

"All the money being poured into this and we get what exactly? Only useful thing I saw mentioned was dealing with medicine and it would be too expensive anyway. Doesn't seem like a good use of limited resources."

To all you nay-sayers and Luddites: Most of the advances in modern science are the direct result of the sort of inquiry being done with the LHC. Very good science and wonderous advances arise when science is done "for science sake"... If all lines of inquiry were restricted to "something useful", then we'd have far fewer breakthroughs and new discoveries.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Dan T — Fri, 15 May 2009 18:10:11 GMT

QUESTION: Perhaps I am wrong, but my understanding of antimatter / matter is that when they come into contact both are then completely destroyed and thus cease to exist. If this is true then don’t we need to scratch out the Law of Conservation of Matter and Energy, which states that mass cannot be created/destroyed, although it may be rearranged in space, and changed into different types of particles? (~Wikipedia) On the other hand, it could be that the action does indeed adhere to the law and when the particles “cease to exist” they are actually transported to another time, dimension, or place in space. Could this be a stepping stone for the discovery of time travel, shifting dimensions, completely removing the smell from my sneakers . . . ? I find this intriguing and exhaustingly confusing, so in the end, does it really “matter”?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Ed Faught, Waxahachie, TX — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:05:50 GMT

We (NOT they) have been producing and using antiprotons for about 20 years at Fermilab, Illinois. None have escaped to create havoc.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Frank Glover, rochester, NY — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:29:19 GMT

"where does the antimatter go, when as the article states it blips out of existence, there has to be more to it. What is it good for?"

Basically, it becomes energy, though depending on the specific matter and anti-matter particles in question, you may also get neutrinos and other stuff.

The simplest case is an electron meeting a positron (which is the anti-matter counterpart of the electron) and becoming a gamma-ray photon of a very specific wavelength...)

Antimatter goes to the movies

jose nose — Fri, 15 May 2009 20:50:26 GMT

Antimater bomb: Some people seems they have fears about this. Truth is: nuclear fission and nuclear fusion bombs are already VERY efficient in what they do. Actually they are so efficient that there is no need to even bother in getting something better.

Not sure about the numbers, but I believe if you are looking into releasing X amount of energy, conventional nuclear devices are much easier/cheaper/well know that antimatter stuff.
And antimatter is hard to contain

So I do not see that an antimatter bomb will provide any type of advantage. Perhaps that you can make smaller bombs for the same X energy to be released

So I would not worry. Antimatter bombs will not make the world a more un-safe place (or less safe) than we already are.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Michael, North Dakota — Fri, 15 May 2009 21:08:21 GMT

Considering it'd take an equal amount of anti-matter to destroy anything (if you wanna destroy the earth, you need an equal amount of anti-matter, so earth sized amount, to do it)

You're more likely to be killed via out of control nanobots at this point.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Ray, New York — Fri, 15 May 2009 22:38:33 GMT

"where does the antimatter go, when as the article states it blips out of existence, there has to be more to it. What is it good for?"

When antimatter collides with matter energy is released. So the antimatter (and matter, for that matter) get converted to energy.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Frank Glover, Rochester, NY — Sat, 16 May 2009 01:52:40 GMT

"Considering it'd take an equal amount of anti-matter to destroy anything (if you wanna destroy the earth, you need an equal amount of anti-matter, so earth sized amount, to do it)"

Depends on what you mean by 'destroy.' You don't have to convert the entire mass of Earth into energy, in order to make it rather useless and uninhabitable.

The equation E=mc^2 (Energy equals mass multiplied by the square of the speed of light)essentially says that a small amount of matter can become a large amount of energy. Only a very small amount of the fissionable (or fusable) material in nuclear weapons is converted to energy, but if you've seen pictures of post-nuclear Hiroshima, you know that the amount of energy released can be...quite enough.

Given a means of producing enough antimatter (and it needn't be much), one could have a kind of nuclear thermal rocket wherein a tiny amount of antimatter is introduced into a reaction mass (even water may suffice). The antimatter is annihilated on contact, and the energy released superheats the surrounding the surrounding material into a very hot, high-thrust exhaust jet.

The late Dr. Robert L. Forward wrote at length about this (and some other exotic technologies) and how the antimatter could be produced with space-based, solar powered, high beam current particle accelerators.

Antimatter goes to the movies

James Hedrick, Somerville. Indiana — Sat, 16 May 2009 02:00:26 GMT

At the point in time when matter condensed out of the cooling Big Bang, what held the matter and anti-matter apart long enough for it to then collide and convert back to energy? I'm also asking, is this when the universe finally would have become visible to our eyes? And, third question, would this point in time of explosions from matter and anti-matter not have happened in a spherical layer, in the expanding ball, and just blown creation to a stand still? I'm just a 63 year old who has loved the shared knowledge of so many minds in OUR time. Thought I'd share my wonder and joy of what it is like to walk in a time like ours.

Antimatter goes to the movies

LOLing@your ignorance — Sat, 16 May 2009 03:16:02 GMT

"Sigh. "Negatrons" are called electrons.
Not Completely Uneducated (Sent Friday, May 15, 2009 11:27 AM)"

I am shocked it took as long as it did for someone to point this out. I commend you sir. If the rest of you people have no idea what you are talking about, DON'T POST!

Antimatter goes to the movies

Michael, North Dakota — Sat, 16 May 2009 03:40:33 GMT

"Depends on what you mean by 'destroy.' You don't have to convert the entire mass of Earth into energy, in order to make it rather useless and uninhabitable."

Quite correct, I wasn't thinking uninhabitable, i was talking complete deconstruction of the planet Earth. To make a large area uninhabitable wouldn't take much at all. but at the same time, producing the amount needed for such would be so prohibitively expensive that no nation would be researching into it (I hope -.-)

Antimatter goes to the movies

Anyone else annoyed yet? Missouri — Sat, 16 May 2009 07:33:22 GMT

Who cares? In the end, even if someone is thinking about or trying to build an anti-matter bomb, what can any of us to slow it down or stop it. Just go back to eating your pop tarts and pancakes. Even if there was a serious issue, it is completely out of the hands of a bunch of Wikipedia know it alls. And I agree with LOLing@your ignorance, if you don't know what your talking about or have to Google it to sound smart, leave it alone or disscuss something that you ko know,like Transformers.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Nathan,Brooklyn,New York — Sat, 16 May 2009 12:46:27 GMT

To the people that think 1.75 quadrillion dollars has been spent on this. Do you not realize that much money isn't even in existence? They are making this anti-matter 1 atom at a time... For an ounce of it would be billions of atoms if not trillions needed.

Antimatter goes to the movies

CCryder, Boulder, Colorado — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:47:15 GMT

To the people who think that research is a waste of time and money, please consider this story.

Michael Faraday, a physicist who did fundamental work with electricity and magnetism, was giving a lecture on his work. A businessman asked him of what practical use it was. Faraday tried to explain to him that it was only research at this point. Nobody knew then that this work would make possible electric generators and motors which makes our modern way of life possible, and so the businessman persisted and said, "But of what practical use is it?" Faraday replied, "Of what practical use is a newborn baby?"

Antimatter goes to the movies

Gabriel C. Arizona — Sat, 16 May 2009 20:38:12 GMT

So does this mean that matter is constantly shifting in and out of matter-antimatter? And if that's the case, how would anything exist? If there is an equal amount of anti-particles, and particles, wouldn't they cancel out every thing? Whooo... Never was good at science. Even in high school.

Antimatter goes to the movies

G Rasmussen, Morganton, NC — Sat, 16 May 2009 21:13:36 GMT

I know how to do all three things mentioned here, how to go faster than light, how to make cheap antimatter, and, especially, how to do what they show on "Lost in Space" or "Star Trek", with today's present level of technology, in fact, there's been a suggestion to convert one of the Space Shuttles into a Starship, capable of traveling to at least any star within a dozen LightYears of Earth. The journey would not be longer than the present Mir missions.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Bob Thompson, Columbia,South Carolina — Sun, 17 May 2009 00:51:19 GMT

Is that antimatter secure from anyone who wants to harm the planet?

[ALAN ADDS: Yes, it's secure enough. When I was at CERN I was with the company of folks who worked there, so I can't say how tight or loose security might be for an intruder. But the important thing about antimatter is that it doesn't stick around for very long. The huge apparatus they have for creating antiprotons and antihydrogen atoms can sustain their existence only for the blink of an eye, so we haven't gotten to the point where there's enough antimatter to keep around.]

Antimatter goes to the movies

JD, Seattle, WA — Sun, 17 May 2009 08:39:01 GMT

Whether the Large Hadron Collider (LCH) at CERN will have the same puzzling fate as the now defunct Superconducting Super Collider (SSC) in Waxahachie, Texas is a known only to a handful of people on this planet and the Aliens From Outer Space™ who, at this very moment, are circling our planet in a cigar-shaped spaceship in low-Earth orbit, as they continue to search for the Mirror Matter Popcorn™ they misplaced during a brief visit to the surface in the late-1940s, presumably for the purpose of having a picnic in Roswell, New Mexico, which they need to power the Hilbert Space Hopper Drive™ that enables their spaceship to travel instantly through vast distances and epochs in the continuum we colloquially call "spacetime" . . .

Is is possible that the basic problem with these types of high-energy particle colliders has nothing to do with the potential interactions among the various primitive particles but instead simply is a matter of the universe, itself, somehow disallowing large coils of fiber optic cables to be assembled and powered?

Over the centuries, through the outstanding work of physicists in the field of electromagnetism, we now know that by inserting a standard 16-penny iron nail into the center of a small toroidal coil (also called an "inductor" or "choke") and then rapidly pulling the iron nail away from and through the center of the coil, a significant amount of electricity is generated, but one might suggest that our brightest minds have yet to connect the dots toward the goal of realizing that an analogous transformation occurs when light is circulated rapidly through a coil made from fiber optic cables, thereby creating an highly-intense gravitational field, which among other things has the ability to propel matter through space via the intimate manipulation of gravitons, especially when activated on the surface of a planet such as the Earth, which has a rapidly pulsating and spinning inner core of liquid iron and nickel . . .

Stated another way, will the LHC continue to have "start-up" problems in much the same way as the SSC had "funding" problems all because fiber optic cables are neither correctly arranged nor properly shielded toward the necessary goal of preventing the sua sponte generation of gravitons?

I have no idea, but I often ponder the paradox ever since I first realized the curious relationship among light and gravity, which primarily was the consequence (a) of observing that nearly every third-year physics with calculus textbook is divided into a grand total of four parts, specifically the set {(1) Gravity (a.k. a, "Classical Mechanics"), (2) Electricity, (3) Magnetism, (4) Light}, and (b) of learning that light and gravity appear to be able to travel at the same relative speed, such that for example, the gravitational effects of the launch of the lunar rockets during the late-1960s reached the moon in approximately the same length of time required for light to travel to the moon, which generally is a strong clue to the inner workings of light and gravity, as well as electricity and magnetism (both which also tend to travel at the same relative speed in a vacuum)

And of the four divisions, parts, or sections of a typical third-year physics with calculus textbook, (a) it is well known that (2) and (3) form a pair where one can generate the other, but (b) it is not so well known that (1) and (4) also form a self-generating pair, since apparently I am one of the few people on the planet at present who clearly understanda the fact that the fundamental rules of the universe strongly favor balance and symmetry, especially in third-year college and university science textbooks, as well as in small railroad sets, where it is well known to those fortunate folks who have one of the new Lionel Model 6-30087 "Area 51 Alien Spaceship Recover Set" train sets and have conducted various experiments using circular track layouts in conjunction with rolling stock additions of either (a) the Lionel Model 6-26379 "Pennsylvania Railroad Gondola with Cable Reels" or (b) the Lionel Model 6-26603 "Lehigh Valley Depressed Flatcar with Reels", when the cable reels are wrapped with ultrathin fiber optics which are powered by a small energy system located inside either (c) an adjacent Lionel Model 6-39318 "Wizard of Oz Boxcar" or (d) an adjacent Lionel Model 6-39262 "'Elvis has left the building' Boxcar" . . .

Stated another way, my prediction for the near future is that in much the same way as the universe, itself, simply could not allow the town of Waxahachie, Texas to be propelled into outer space, neither will the universe allow the French and Swiss to propel themselves into the far distant regions of spacetime, where by doing careful study of the maps of these two colliders, one cannot avoid noticing that both designs have triangular-shaped surface highways . . .

Are the triangular-shaped surface highway components of the designs just a curious coincidence?

Is there a fundamental rule of physics which prevents the operation of high-powered fiber optic coils directly underneath a set of triangular-shaped surface roads?

Are both of these "colliders" fully functional and currently in use precisely for the purpose for which they were designed, which specifically is to act as spacetime travel portals for use by the Mutants From Outer Space™ who seek to steal our dreams, our desires, our women, our Country Western music, and local control of our bowling leagues, and are not to be confused with the Aliens From Outer Space™ who actually are our allies, although few of us are aware of this consciously?

I have no idea at present, but I am working on it diligently . . .

Thanks!

Antimatter goes to the movies

gibbs303, Somewhere in the Upper Midwest — Sun, 17 May 2009 19:03:22 GMT

JD, Seattle, WA (Sent Sunday, May 17, 2009 4:39 AM)

"Mirror Matter Popcorn"

"Hilbert Space Hopper Drive"

"...for use by the Mutants From Outer Space™ who seek to steal our dreams, our desires, our women, our Country Western music, and local control of our bowling leagues..."

Very nice work, JD, all of it; very nice work indeed...

*golf clap*

Antimatter goes to the movies

Frank Glover, Rochester, NY — Sun, 17 May 2009 20:11:22 GMT

"So does this mean that matter is constantly shifting in and out of matter-antimatter? And if that's the case, how would anything exist? If there is an equal amount of anti-particles, and particles, wouldn't they cancel out every thing? Whooo... Never was good at science. Even in high school."

Actually, that's a more profound question than you might think. Physicists think that the Universe *should* be equal parts matter and antimatter...yet everything we observe (and even over interstellar and intergalactic distances there are specific signs to look for that could only be explained by matter-antimatter annihilation happening) tells us that the Universe is composed of nothing but matter, except for infinitesimal amounts produced by localized events)

No one knows, or has a good theory yet, as to why.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Jon M, Lansing, MI — Sun, 17 May 2009 21:12:26 GMT

Instead of worrying about an antimatter bomb scientists in Sweden at the University of Gothenburg have come up with a potential nuclear fusion fuel which could be very simple to use in fusion reactors and quite possibly in fusion bombs.

http://www.science.gu.se/english/News/News_detail?contentId=879280

The material is "Ultra Dense Deuterium". It is apparently stable at room temperature and pressure. It is over 100,000 times heavier than water. A cube, 10 cm a side (1000cc or 1 liter volume) would weigh about 130 metric tons. One cc, 130 kilograms (287lb). This is denser than in the core of the sun.

Because of the super density this material can be made to fuse by relatively low power lasers and produces no radioactivity or harmful waste. Therefore it would be good for power generation.

The downside probably would be that fusion bombs now would be possible without the need for normal fission bombs as a trigger.

Luckily, so far only microscopic quantities of Ultra Dense Deuterium have been produced. However that is sufficient for laboratory testing. According to the above URL leading to the University website and article, the scientists are working to see if some sort of mass production could be developed.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Tim Rommes, Washington, UT — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:51:42 GMT

Frank,
I still say the apparent matter-antimatter imbalance is because matter is gravitationally attracted to matter, antimatter is gravitationally attracted to antimatter, and matter and antimatter are gravitationally repulsive. This maintains symmetry and gives us vast regions of space that are matter dominant and vast regions, far, far away, that are antimatter dominant with extremely limited interaction between the different areas. If the vast region we're in constitutes the "local universe" and other observable galaxies are antimatter dominant much is neatly explained without going to some of the clumsy theories currently in vogue. So far there is no experimental data available to the contrary. Although some relatively simple experiments could be contrived to blow this idea out. Simple experiments, but awkward theories are probably still cheaper.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Jon M, Lansing MI — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:24:14 GMT

Frank - The conventional wisdom among physicists is that matter and antimatter differ only in having opposite electrical charges, but have the same type of positive mass. There are some tests being proposed and done that may settle the question about whether antimatter has negative mass, or whether inertial mass and gravitational mass are the same thing.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Michael Smith, Fallbrook, CA — Mon, 18 May 2009 17:38:03 GMT

When matter and anti-matter combine, they get converted into pure energy.

But what exactly is "pure energy"? Is it something we can store? Does it have mass? Can we use it directly to power things?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Thomas Ashby, Calgary — Tue, 19 May 2009 21:07:40 GMT

What form would antimatter be if it was made in the amount of 1/4 of a gram or 250 mgs. The size of a small tab of pain reliever. Would it be a gas? ie. anti-hydrogen? or some anti-metal? or anti-carbon?

The movie was a good story but non-the less..a story. It did give good insite into that small asylum called vatican city.

You kind of come out of the theater wondering if you just went to church !

Antimatter goes to the movies

Brian Murphy, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada — Tue, 19 May 2009 22:12:10 GMT

Angels & Demons: The science revealed by U of A physicist

By Brian Murphy

May 14, 2009 - Edmonton-Roger Moore says Tom Hanks needn't have worried. "The antimatter bomb plot in Angels and Demons is pure science fiction."

Moore, the University of Alberta physicist (not the actor), has some issues with Hanks' new Hollywood film, Angels and Demons. Moore has a personal connection with the movie that includes a plot by bad guys to break into CERN and steal half a gram of antimatter to blow up Rome.

[READ THE FULL NEWS STORY AT:]

http://www.science.ualberta.ca/news.cfm?story=91113

Antimatter goes to the movies

James Greene, Sandy, Utah — Wed, 20 May 2009 02:41:19 GMT

Matter and anit matter are of no matter. It is the neutral/dark matter that holds it all together, causes the expansion/contraction of the universe, dictates the laws of the physics, etc. But if you want to see a lot of anti-matter - create an environment where it occurs naturally.

Antimatter goes to the movies

PoorMarcos Waterloo, Iowa — Wed, 20 May 2009 06:55:11 GMT

Wasn't it Shakespere who said: "Better to let them think you a FOOL then to open your mouth & remove all doubt."?

THX Seattle!!!?

Glen U think?

Glad I'm not the CEO for Wastexhachie: my unIvy League Resume was flushed. Posted it on my wall, that is, until I ran out of t.p.

Mythbuster: If weight isn't important in a vacuum ... !
How come were all waiting for some results?

Course only MENSA people heard of the project(s)!? Get real. You live on an acorn diet?

If 15 million particles on average of anti-matter flow through our bodies, does that mean we could all potentially be (volume important here)$quadrillionaires times 26.25 *(10**12th)? "All I want is my fair share, all I want is what I got coming to me!"

Q: And what is a dwarf if the other side is a black hole?
A: Light with direction!

Antimatter goes to the movies

Marcos de W'loo — Thu, 21 May 2009 03:32:45 GMT

Before my mistake is revealed...
Dark matter < $ Anti matter

New Question of Marx: Seems rather silly we build these tracks where gravity can grab & drag down PROTON particles. SO, what if a track were built within the Bermuda TRIANGLE, gravitations effect on "heavier protons" in a vaccuum being least!?

Pls. reply. Acknowledge though my field is C.S. & Math. Not Physics.

Antimatter goes to the movies

wks, somewhere in, the US — Thu, 21 May 2009 04:19:44 GMT

Science cannot be proven,
I think that we should all remember that.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Marcos again, sorry I posted Waterloo, Iowa — Thu, 21 May 2009 04:52:36 GMT

DO POST! Some of the best ideas come from the least educated. (ie) paper clip. So what ... I am not a physicist without a job; but, you read this then.

If my flying car ran out of gas which state would I fall in?

Do you get a F. U. I. if intoxicated?

Brakes are only good for ground vehicles. Why waste the weighty / energy in flight if you can't land on a dime?

I really do like Southern Engineers. Just forget about seceeding okay! Oh & by the way, I think Sam's thumb is up! And the other is holding the relief check.

I am not just making this stuff up.

You don't have to be educated to not know what you're talking about. <Excuse the insult> But you do need to sink to a level of mudslinging when wallowing with the same sort. <Somebody is perfect> how unAlien!

What would we be if we were all FED wise-crackers?
Well paid physicists or teachers?

It occured to me that Aliens could have refueled from Neptune where there is an abundance of Methane. PHTTT

How do you think they'll bill us when we harness the neutrino's travelling faster than light.

Who sent the call through the black hole and who was on the receiving end?

If this FOOL = me is boring your intellect maybe I should remain silent! Only sometimes it is difficult to distinguish the FOOL & the Intellect.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Marcos again, sorry I posted Waterloo, Iowa — Thu, 21 May 2009 06:06:36 GMT

Do POST. Why else do we study species with inferior intellect? I learned that even gold <*{>< can be trained. - Moron (me)

The le$$ fortunate uneducated rai$e more brilliant conundrums that keep the intellectuals creating words and the theorist paid; and, thereupon for us to study. Therein lies the problem. Who else buys paperclips? - Scientists

I am confused who is the Dummy & who is the Intellectual? - Sane

Message: What will it cost to send a neutrinogram through the galaxy or a black hole in ane-mail to the FEDERATION? Perhaps the sky is full of SPAM! And AINT nobody listening. - Dysfunctional Earth animal

Aliens could've visited Neptune Methane. Perhaps their needs for Oxygen was more important. Wasn't me!
They're a species vastly superior to our Pea-brain. Which raises a question of dynamic proportions:

It is not the size of the brain; rather, the percentage used that determines superiority.
Back, Front, Right, or Red who'd ever thought their'd be a price on a Head? - Deputy
Or, maybe we're a rest stop for the vacationing aliens.
Being so pale, they're probably right under our noses. - Jupiter seems awfully cloudy! With an abundance of Helium to boot.

FLY'N CAR:
- Why build brakes for an inefficient FLYING OBJECT if it can't land on a dime?
- Who's idea was it to bury the car / plane pilot who ran out of fuel? And which U.S. state will one crash 1st? Whom do you sue the manufacture, the mechanic, or the inventor?
- Law enforce F.U.I.(s)?

Antimatter goes to the movies

Marcos Waterloo, Iowa — Thu, 21 May 2009 06:39:51 GMT

UPDATED: Oh No! When is the world going to start billing for Oxygen & not for FUEL? - GREEN PEACE & Environmentalists

I am glad there are no fees for posting my Litter, course I could always post my whits on Twitter.

Couldn't disCERN my conCERN to know the where-a-bouts of CERN. This fictitious film and lab isn't about Homeland SECURITY of the VATICAN is it! Well?
Can't afford the film; but, guessing from a comment about Sweden ... hope there is no need for usCe RN.

Afterthoughts

Antimatter goes to the movies

Michael Kristafor — Thu, 21 May 2009 10:40:45 GMT

Why don't scientists try to create antimatter thats easier to contain? Lithium, for example, might be better than hydrogen. Lithium can become superconducting at low temperatures. Just a thought.

Antimatter goes to the movies

Marcos W'loo — Sat, 23 May 2009 01:21:17 GMT

CERN GPS coordinates (* Nevermind found it! *)
Latitude: 46°13'59'' N
Longitude: 6°3'20'' E
984 or N: Route De Meyrin, W: Chemin De La Berne, S: Chemin De Franchevaux, E: Chemin De Bel-Horizon

Is it the Science that counts; but, not the price tag $10 billion? Just 10 days worth of war from Y2k - 2008.

Retinal scan too. (* lasik surgery *)

Antimatter goes to the movies

Mark Fraune, Waterloo, Iowa — Tue, 26 May 2009 22:25:14 GMT

Alan visitor to CERN: Posts Bob T., C,S. Carolina
Joan of Arc: Age 19, extinct
MO: << A- Noide
ND: NRG *(Earth)= Obliteration
Eric de CA: I bet you that our teacher you speak of could write an article on science if he were paid a descent salary $! Are they any closer to solving this? - Cash in advance. - Grant Ed
Quark Family: Strange, Truth, Up, Beauty, C)harm, & down. Like the Sullivans - no one left behind.
Tachyons: move faster than light speed.
Neutrinos pass through you.
Were talking the weight of minus 10**z! And I wish we could get our seasons straight. - On the flip side!

Antimatter goes to the movies

Hasanuddin — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:10:20 GMT

It is a truly fantastic irony that this movie comes out demonizing antimatter and implicating CERN just at a time that a new model signalling the possible huge benefits, importance, and advancement in antimatter. Again, with this "real" model and scientific battle CERN takes a central position. See the debate at: http://hypography.com/forums/alternative-theories/18910-the-dominium-model-by-hasanuddin.html

Antimatter goes to the movies

Paul Eaton, Boston MA — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:52:51 GMT

For the most part I enjoyed this article very much. However, I did not approve of the "expert" testimony, "Landua said. "It happened almost, but a little bit of matter was left - only a tiny, tiny bit - which now makes up all the stars, planets and us." First of all, how can Landua, or anyone, claim that they have direct-data from distant galaxies that confirms or denies that they are made of matter or antimatter. The reasoning is clear. If antiatoms are the mirror same as matter-atoms, then antifusion would occur producing light indistinguishable for light from our Sun, because photons are the antiparticle of itself.

I am also a proponent of a new model being debated and supported at http://hypography.com/forums/alternative-theories/18910-the-dominium-model-by-hasanuddin.html