[Petrochemicals (OP)]

Here is the new super expensive science toy idea to come out. The super expensive really really big collider.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-46862486

Given that the LHC was such a sucess in finding theoretical particles that they wish to do it again, is this science throwing good money after bad ? Given that i read recently that laser technology will be able to do the experiments at cern in the size of a briefcase, I can only think that cern actually has some alternate military application, ie trying to figure out antigravity before 'dem damm'd chineeze ?

[Bored chemist]

I presume you would have said much the same about Faraday's work on electromagnetism because, at the time, nobody could have seen any use for it.

[Petrochemicals (OP)]

Faradays work did not require the enormous expense for a highly farther advanced obsure research device on the basis that the earlier highly advanced obscure research device did not yield the results that they wanted. Faradays costs where not likely to be reduced considerably inbetween the start of construction and experiment taking place.

A better analergy would be the nuclear bomb. The research into material that would yield a chain reaction did not cost 5 percent of Britians gdp. The manhatten project did, but this was with a clear end goal with proven research, not on the back of an earlier one that was "not quite what we were expecting". Most innovations of merrit do not cost so much, transistor laser etc where not quite so expensive. If you are having to try so hard your probably doing it wrong.  Its got military written all over it, just like NASA.

They would better spend it building a moon base.