At 02:20 AM 9/25/01, you wrote:
>And just to bring up a topic *other* than current world events, how about
>this:
>
>If anyone is informed and interested, I have been thinking lately about
>particle accelerators. I know they are built to provide an infrastructure
>for various experiments in quantum physics, but beyond a basic understanding
>of subatomic phenomenon my knowledge on their true purpose is limited. How
>many are there in the U.S.? Where are they located?
>
>Just wondering ...
>
>T.Sands
Total? Or just the big ones capable of doing cutting-edge research?
For example, the university where I did my undergraduate work had between
3000 and 4000 total students (including graduate programs and the law
school), and had a cyclotron and a van de Graaff generator, both of which
were used for nuclear physics lab classes, research, and for producing
isotopes used by local hospitals or other medical organizations. The
"research," of course, did not involve looking for the Higgs particle ;-) .
You would get a similar answer if you asked how many observatories there
are in the US: in addition to the big ones, many colleges have their
own. (The university mentioned above had a 16" reflector mounted on the
roof of the science building, for example.)
-- Ronn! :)
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