Probing Question: Could the Large Hadron Collider swallow the Earth?
Could the Large Hadron Collider create a black hole that would swallow the Earth? "Absolutely not," said Stephane Coutu, Penn State professor of physics. "There is nothing to fear from the so-called 'Doomsday Device.'" Fears about black holes are exacerbated by media hype about the supercollider, with headlines labeling it a "Doomsday Device" and "Big Bang Machine." What really is the LHC, and how can smashing particles together tell us anything new about the universe? (more)