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Weasel Apparently Shuts Down World's Most Powerful Particle Collider (npr.org)

New reader mjnhbg1088 cites an article on NPR: A small mammal has sabotaged the world's most powerful scientific instrument. The Large Hadron Collider, a 17-mile superconducting machine designed to smash protons together at close to the speed of light, went offline overnight. Engineers investigating the mishap found the charred remains of a furry creature near a gnawed-through power cable. "We had electrical problems, and we are pretty sure this was caused by a small animal," says Arnaud Marsollier, head of press for CERN, the organization that runs the $7 billion particle collider in Switzerland. Although they had not conducted a thorough analysis of the remains, Marsollier says they believe the creature was "a weasel, probably." The shutdown comes as the LHC was preparing to collect new data on the Higgs Boson, a fundamental particle it discovered in 2012. The Higgs is believed to endow other particles with mass, and it is considered to be a cornerstone of the modern theory of particle physics. CERN says the creature may have been a marten.

23 of 125 comments (clear)

  1. Updating the systems manual... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 4, Funny

    There are bugs, and then there are weasels.

  2. Dr. Kwipke's analysis by Tablizer · · Score: 2

    They are called weasels for a weason.

  3. Pop... by Vulch · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...Goes the weasel.

  4. Mandatory by Virtucon · · Score: 3, Funny
    --
    Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
    1. Re:Mandatory by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 4, Funny

      Just before the power went down, many people reported hearing words, reverberating throughout the length of the tunnel containing the Large Hadron Collider...

      I AM WEASEL!

      Michael Dorn has been cleared of all wrongdoing, as numerous eyewitnesses placed him on a California studio lot at the time of the incident.

      --
      #DeleteChrome
  5. words by Szeraax · · Score: 2

    Enough with these weasel words! I want to know why it shut down, really!

    1. Re:words by Kernel+Kurtz · · Score: 3, Funny

      Weaseling out of things is what sets us apart from the animals. Except the weasel....

  6. Might sound crazy. . . by Idou · · Score: 2

    But a stoat is like a weasel and after seeing this video, I can totally believe it. . .

    These animals may pose a bigger threat to humanity than ISIS. . .

    --
    Sdelat' Ameriku velikoy Snova!
    1. Re:Might sound crazy. . . by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 3, Funny

      No, a weasel is weasily wecognisable. Stoats are stoatally different.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
  7. Weasel / Marten confusion. by slacktide · · Score: 2

    It's not a weasel, it's a marten! POW! http://www.cbsnews.com/news/qu...

    1. Re:Weasel / Marten confusion. by pcervasio · · Score: 3, Funny

      So I guess they suffered a Marten Short.

  8. Re:Or they could be lying by WarJolt · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I just want to know how charred something has to be for it to be "probably" a weasel.

  9. Science denying weasel by Photonmaker · · Score: 2, Funny

    I thought he was campaigning in Indiana.

  10. For our visual lerners by ausekilis · · Score: 2

    It was probably the opposite of this. (Yes, its safe for work)

  11. So... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    ...the LHC was about to destroy the universe and the surviving timeline involved a weasel chewing through a power cable this time.

  12. Re:Or they could be lying by emho24 · · Score: 2

    Too many times I've seen what happens when squirrels get fried on the power lines near my house. To say they "explode" is an understatement. Mostly is just a big bloody meat mess on my garage door and driveway.

    --
    You must gather your party before venturing forth.
  13. Ferret Helped Get It Going by Feneric · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Somewhat ironic since Nibbler the Ferret helped get it running to begin with: http://www.best-top10-list.com... Ferrets have a pretty good history for helping out this way in scientific institutions, going back at least to 1971 in Fermilab: http://boingboing.net/2013/06/...

  14. First a bird, now a weasel by MobyDisk · · Score: 2

    Does everyone remember when a bird with a baguette disabled the LHC?

    Back then, there was a theory that the LHC could destroy the universe. There is another theory that says any parallel universe that could destroy itself or cause a paradox, is not a possible universe. Therefore, no matter what we do we could never build a universe destroying or paradox generating machine. So much like in H.G. Wells "The Time Machine" something would always happen to prevent the LHC from coming online. I dismissed it as crackpot until the whole bird with baguette thing happened. I'm told the LHC went online, but there is a part of me that just thinks it is all a hoax and we will forever be plagued with storms, earthquake, weasels, or baguettes at the very last moment before startup, until we give up trying to start the dang thing.

  15. Latest findings by T.E.D. · · Score: 2

    CERN says the creature may have been a marten.

    Upon further research, CERN now says the creature was in fact delicious with a dash of Siriacha on it.

  16. added Weasel to bug list by kiviQr · · Score: 2

    done ...added Weasel to my jira instance. Can't decide if it should be considered user error.

  17. Stupid martens by excelsior_gr · · Score: 2

    Damned martens keep eating my car, too! A couple of months back, one ate the rubber pipe of the break assist and the battery cables. Cost about 200 euros. They are a real problem in middle Europe...

  18. One weasel ... Many weasels ... by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 5, Insightful
    This incident shows the power of collective action. One weasel went up against the Large Hadron Collider and ended up dead.

    Back in the 1990s a whole bunch of weasels went up against Superconducting Super Collider. The SSC died, and was reduced a mere hole in the ground in the southern suburbs of Dallas, TX. Never underestimate the power of these congress critters.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  19. Re: Or they could be lying by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It was a 66KV sub-transmission supply. If you touch one, you will have possibly been a person. And that is assuming the protection works fast. We had a protection system fail, miles of power line had to be rebuilt and the damage to the area was so great no one knows the cause of the original fault.