I’m a fan of the movement which venerates society’s unsung heroes. The nerds, if I’m honest: engineers, physicists, chemists. And thousands of nerds have labored for thousands of days to create the ultimate experimental setup, the Large Hadron Collider. After a rocky start, it’ll be starting back up in June, and guess who’ll be throwing the switch? No, not someone who has anything to do with the thing. They’ve selected a movie star, whose fleeting association with antimatter (the upcoming Angels and Demons) means he’s worthy. Give me a break.
I can’t think of a reason to do this. It’s symbolic. The thinkers of the world have been overshadowed by the glitterati for as long as we can remember, and now when they have something big, something with the budget of twenty Hollywood movies, they do this. They don’t need the press, they don’t need the celebrity. They should have said “Sorry Mr. Hanks, but this isn’t like the movies. This is a serious scientific endeavor, and we can’t have any non-essential personnel in the control room. I’m sure you understand.”
Yeah, I really think this is an absurd publicity stunt.
FOR HIS MOVIE!!! This does nothing to glorify the scientific endeavor that has occupied so many people’s lives for so long. Maybe we should just have Ronald McDonald throw the switch in order to promote the newest Big Mac!
I’m totally against the gliterati having anything to do with this. This is the moment for the people who have invested so much time and effort into this to shine. Tom Hanks has a movie once a year and gets his opportunity to shine each time he walks down the red carpet. Mr. Hanks, with all due respect, fcuk off and find your spotlight somewhere else.
Meh, we’re all going to get sucked into the black hole it creates anyway.
Hopefully it annihilates the planet before society gets any worse.
I think this is evidence that we are in a black hole.
Seriously though, they made a rap for this thing right? Not that that’s a bad thing, but I think it illustrates the think of people who run it aren’t afraid to have a heart.
Of course it’s a grab for attention, but Tom Hanks is a pretty ledgit grab.
it’ll get press for the LHC and I’m sure that is what they are interested in. Pretty cool actually that something like this is drawing so much attention.
All you guys need to stop complaining about dumb things like this. At least its not Paris Hilton. Tom Hanks is educated and well like in most circles. This whole country is revolved around celebrity. If you say some no name scientist is throwing the switch than there is nothing really there to excite me but Tom freaking Hanks. Thats something only dreams are made of.
It’s not your or my right to decide who turns the LHC back on. In this matter, I would say that the researchers and managers responsible for the LHC have chosen wisely. By choosing a well known face like Tom Hanks they might succeed in drawing attention to their project, and stirring up some new public interest.
I second that motion. Too many people have not heard of the LHC even when it was supposed to be turned on. Now many more people will know about it and pay some well needed attention to the most expensive and incredible scientific project that humanity has ever created.
Agreed. Ask middle America what the LHC is, and then ask them who Tom Hanks is; there is no guessing who or which is more well-known.
Well, at least he won’t have to act when he turns the thing on. “Tom Hanks couldn’t act his way out of a nut sack!”.
You and the people who read this are among the few who would find my CERN collider cartoon funny. I would like to have attached it, but I guess you try to avoid attachments. Is there any way that I can get you a pdf copy?
I’m fine with this personally. Maybe it will get the idiots who think this collider will create a black hole to shut up because Tom Hanks is throwing the switch.
Did the folks ask him to start it or did he ask them?
Seems hardly fair to think ill of him if they asked him.
He’s a supporter of science. I say it’s fine.
You can’t think of a reason to have Tom Hanks turn it on? Please. I’ll break it down for you since you can’t possible fathom the motivation for choosing Hanks: The problem is that few people understand what the collider does and even fewer people care. And even less than that would recognize the so called “thinkers” behind this project. They obviously recognized this and made a smart marketing move, betting the amount of positive publicity generated by Tom Hanks would far outweigh any backlash from whiny tech bloggers. Remember when Tom Hank was inducted into the Rangers Hall of Fame as an honorary member for his work in Saving Private Ryan? Why don’t you go over to Ft. Benning and tell them it was dumb idea.
Of all of the movie stars to choose from I think they picked one of the best, he didn’t direct “from the earth to the moon” because of his passion for acting, he did it because of his passion for space. Believe it or not Tom Hanks is a nerd. A nerd trapped in a movie stars career, but a nerd non the less.
But that will be before or after the movie? maybe the Illuminati know already the end of this story, that’s why they chosen him.
Is his face gonna be there when they turn it on?
Thank god they didn’t choose Leonard Nemoy or William Shatner. There must be at least a few Trekkies amongst the staff!
did you forget that he was in “Big?”
Tom Hanks collects antique typewriters. His nerd credentials are assured.
And w can blame Hollywood for the resulting black hole…
it was a pretty clever move, if it works he’s brought loads of publicity to the project, if it creates a black hole and kills us all, it’s Tom Hank’s fault. And it could have been worse, they could have chosen the other Tom….
Great story – I posted something about the CERN project a while back. Nothing exciting really – until the wife of Dr Brian Cox at CERN decided to comment on my blog.
http://contentcontentblog.wordpress.com/2008/07/01/chris-morris-and-the-cern-particle-smasher/
Nice! I’ve had a couple bands post on my personal music blog. I love that feeling.
I love the fact that people care about this stuff. Tom Hanks os a good guy, and if he’s a nerd too, bonus! I think it’ll be great for the LHC, which has had more press for failing than it got for neing built. It needs a break and TH might lighten things abit instead of having everyone conentrate on writing about when it’ll next fail (which most of the press would surely do without a more interesting story).