Conference hall No.1.
The screen displayed a live stream from 360,000 kilometers away, with an astronaut with a Chinese flag printed on his uniform standing in front of a control console.
A clear voice was heard throughout the conference hall.
“Collision track is good to go!
“Target energy level: One peta electronvolt.
“Electric circuit is in good condition.
“Being power up!”
The astronaut standing in front of the console reached out and pressed a button.
Immediately after, a huge amount of energy began to enter the collider ring.
Driven by the energy that simulated the beginning of the Big Bang, the protons collided with one another, producing sparks and debris that were far too small for the naked eye to see.
The screen began to display an image of an energy spectrum detector. The atmosphere in the crowd was pushed to a peak, and everyone couldn’t help but stand up and applause, cheering for this glorious moment.
The protons were colliding with an energy of 1000 TeV!
Compared to the Large Hadron Collider with a maximum collision energy of 14 TeV, the proton collision energy of the Lunar Hadron Collider was two magnitudes higher!
People would be able to use peta electronvolts of energy to create neutrinos and simulate the big bang and black holes. Physicists would be able to unravel the deepest secrets of the universe, such as dark matter and dark energy.
Lu Zhou drowned in the thunderous applause. He looked at the screen with a heartfelt smile on his face and gently clenched his fist.
It’s been seven years.
Seven years since that summer.
A lot had changed since then, but he still believed in what he saw.
He knew he was correct.
Even if other people said otherwise.
Back then, he was just an intern. Both his academic status and knowledge weren’t taken seriously. The Chinese physics community did not have enough resources to verify his theory.
But now, there was nothing that could stop him from doing the experiment he wanted. He was going to lead the world into a new era of physics.
This moment…
Is finally here!
…
The morning of December 19th.
After only half a day, the news of the successful launch of the Lunar Hadron Collider already spread across the globe.
Related headlines began to appear in newspapers the next day.
[The 1000 TeV Proton Collision Experiment! Particle Physics Research Enters A New Era!]
[The ILHCRC Takes Us Back To 15 Billion Years Ago!]
[Shook! The Chinese Scientists Are Making Black Holes On The Moon!]
[NASA Issued A Warning That Particle Physics Experiments On The Moon Might Have A Serious Impact On The Earth-Moon Rotation!]
[…]
Inside the ILHCRC chairman’s office, a tall female assistant handed Lu Zhou a cup of coffee. Lu Zhou took a sip of the coffee as he flipped through the newspaper in his hand.
“I finally understand something.”
Luo Wenxuan was playing with the plants on the window ledge. He looked back at Lu Zhou and spoke curiously.
“Understand what?”
“Why does the public have such a big misunderstanding of physics and particle physics experiments?” Lu Zhou said with a smile as he turned the newspaper in his hand. He shook his head and said, “But I quite like the nickname CNN gave me.”
“What did they call you?”
“The crazy atomic destroyer.”
Luo Wenxuan couldn’t help but smirk.
“… Are you sure it is CNN?”
Lu Zhou: “Yeah, why?”
Luo Wenxuan: “Sounds like something from a Japanese anime.”
Lu Zhou smiled and shook his head.
There was even a photo of Lu Zhou as a villain, holding Earth and Moon in his hands.
Even though Lu Zhou knew CNN was trying to insult him, he couldn’t help but laugh at how stupid they were.
It would be ridiculous for a peta electronvolt collider to create a black hole. If they wanted to destroy the solar system, they would at least need to build a collider that was a trillion times larger.
Also, it was offensive for him to draw his handsome face in such an ugly way.
Luo Wenxuan looked at the drawing and wanted to laugh. However, he suddenly remembered that Lu Zhou was about to send him to Africa, so he refrained himself and spoke.
“The meeting is about to begin, should we head on over?”
Lu Zhou looked at the time on his watch.
“How about you go?”
“But it’s so important… I don’t think it’s appropriate, you should go in person,” Luo Wenxuan said with an awkward look on his face.
He actually knew what Lu Zhou wanted to say at the meeting.
He wasn’t against Lu Zhou’s idea. However, he didn’t have enough authority to make the announcement himself. After all, even though the ILHCRC headquarters was in China, it was still an international organization. After all, countries paid a lot of money to participate in the organization.
He wasn’t quite at the level of an academic leader.
“Well, I’m trying to train you, there’s a first time for everything, right?”
Lu Zhou looked at Luo Wenxuan and put the newspaper aside. He stood up from his chair and spoke.
“Fine, let’s go together.”
…
The meeting was held in the conference hall No.2.
Compared to yesterday’s conference, this venue was much smaller. There was only one long table in the middle of the room, with a lot less decoration.
Sitting here were council members appointed by various countries.
Even though they weren’t expert physicists, they were all well-known and powerful people.
These people held important positions in scientific research institutions, and they all had expert negotiation skills.
It was obvious from their serious faces that this meeting was much more important than the celebratory conference that happened yesterday. This meeting was much more impactful to the physics community.
There was only one reason.
The council would discuss the experimental arrangements for the next year.
This would determine the physics Nobel Prizes for at least the next 50 years.
Theoretical particle physics had surpassed experimental physics for many years. There were already theories on black holes and the quantum world.
However, the theory needed to be backed by experimental data.
Everyone wanted to use this collider to verify their own theories.
The ILHCRC meeting was like the calm before the storm. Just like other fields, the academic world was not immune to vanity.
Especially when it came to the Nobel Prize or other high-level honors, there were only a few people who did not care about fame and fortune.
Everyone was ready to fight at this meeting.
Whether for themselves…
Or for their school of thought, or even country…
The clock hit ten o’clock; the meeting officially began.
As the chairman of the ILHCRC, Lu Zhou sat down at the conference table.
His opening remarks were short and concise.
However, when everyone thought Lu Zhou would discuss their plans, Lu Zhou’s words shocked everyone except himself and Luo Wenxuan.
“I’ll briefly talk about the experiment arrangements.”
As if there was no room for negotiation, Lu Zhou spoke in a calm tone.
“I’ve looked at the 2015 test records from the CERN database. The 750 GeV characteristic peak that appeared on the ALICE and ATLAS detectors was definitely not an accident. I don’t think we can attribute it to quantum fluctuations.”
Professor Tarrant from Europe frowned. He spun the pen in his hand and said, “I know the experiment you talked about, but the confidence level of the signal detection is not even 3 sigma…
“That is because our technology was not advanced enough, but that problem has been solved. I believe in my calculations, and there has to be more to the story.”
Lu Zhou flipped through his meeting notes and glanced around the conference table. He spoke in a stern tone.
“The only goal of the ILHCRC for 2023 will be surrounding the 750 GeV characteristic peak.
“We have a good theoretical basis, as well as experimental tools.
“I will prove that I was correct.”
The entire room was silent, followed by a quiet commotion.
The council members were shocked and astonished.
Everything happened so suddenly.
None of them expected this.
Lu Zhou knew why they were surprised, but he did not explain anything. He gently smiled and placed his meeting notes on the table.
Sure, he could explain himself.
But there was no need to.
He would use evidence to prove that he was correct.
Not to mention that he should deserve at least half of the credit for building the collider on the moon, right?
Hence, it wasn’t ridiculous for him to use the collider to verify his own theories.
If someone disagreed?
Well, they could build their own collider and use it however they liked.
When Lu Zhou thought about the upcoming experiment, he couldn’t help but smirk.
This might be a little selfish.
But…
It feels f*cking amazing!
