Particle Fever – Die Jagd nach dem Higgs (2013)

Particle Fever – Die Jagd nach dem Higgs: Directed by Mark Levinson. With David Kaplan, Fabiola Gianotti, Sherwood Boehlert, Joel Hefley. As the Large Hadron Collider is about to be launched for the first time, physicists are on the cusp of the greatest scientific discovery of all time — or perhaps their greatest failure.

“Although this is a documentary about the worldu0026#39;s greatest scientific undertaking, thereu0026#39;s no need for those whou0026#39;ve abandoned hope of understanding physics or other advanced sciences to roll their eyes and move on. This one is less about the abstract principles and obscure questions motivating thousands of scientists and dozens of governments to collaborate on the massive European nuclear facility CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) than about the personal and human factors behind it.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe script offers some degree of Physics for Dummies (present company included), in trying to explain the basics of what we know about subatomic particles, and what proving thereu0026#39;s such a thing as the Higgs boson could mean about the nature of existence. The so-called u0026quot;God Particleu0026quot; was posited as the reason atoms collect to form all matter, including life as we know it, in the universe. Supposedly, learning not only that it exists, but what it weighs could either support arguments for some sort of intelligent or symmetrical design, or a cosmic randomness that might pervade through innumerable parallel universes.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBut before you doze off, remember this is mainly about the people behind the curtain. We learn about their dreams and motives. We even share in many of their lighter moments, along with the suspense of whether this massive undertaking would even work, what it would help us understand, and where any results might lead academic endeavors in multiple disciplines for generations to come. Itu0026#39;s less scientifically informative, or slickly produced, than the new incarnation of Cosmos thatu0026#39;s been running on several TV networks. But itu0026#39;s more intimate in showing relatable emotions among the brainiacs whou0026#39;ve devoted years of their lives to this highly speculative venture.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePerhaps the best feature of the film is its clarity about the underlying difference between science and other human pursuits like religion or politics. Everyone at CERN was seeking objective, provable answers, even if they unraveled their own beliefs. And all were dedicated to the mission with absolutely no idea of what commercial uses, if any, their outcomes might engender. Itu0026#39;s the purity of human curiosity at its finest. Learning for its own sake. No one at NASA expected the space race to leave us with Tang and other related products. Time will tell on the practical applications and cultural developments weu0026#39;ll receive from the labors of these scholars. For now, itu0026#39;s reassuring to know theyu0026#39;ve got a place to find the answers.”