Jan 30, 2017 11:27 PM
http://bigthink.com/robby-berman/tableto...iders-cant
EXCERPT: When we think of discoveries at the forefront of physics, we tend to think of massive particle accelerators like the 27-kilometer Large Hadron Collider (LHC). But it wasn’t always this way. Physics arguably began with the introduction of atoms by Leucippus and Democitrus, who logically worked out the existence of atoms around 450 BC. J. J. Thompson discovered electrons in 1897 using comparatively simple electrically charged cathode tubes; Ernest Rutherford discovered the nucleus in 1911 using a similarly modest rig. Now in the 21st century, tabletop physics is making a comeback. The value of particle accelerators is obvious, climaxing — for now anyway — with finding the Higgs Boson in 2012. But since then, meaningful findings have become scarce. But big questions remain, and simpler devices may actually be better at of finding certain answers....
EXCERPT: When we think of discoveries at the forefront of physics, we tend to think of massive particle accelerators like the 27-kilometer Large Hadron Collider (LHC). But it wasn’t always this way. Physics arguably began with the introduction of atoms by Leucippus and Democitrus, who logically worked out the existence of atoms around 450 BC. J. J. Thompson discovered electrons in 1897 using comparatively simple electrically charged cathode tubes; Ernest Rutherford discovered the nucleus in 1911 using a similarly modest rig. Now in the 21st century, tabletop physics is making a comeback. The value of particle accelerators is obvious, climaxing — for now anyway — with finding the Higgs Boson in 2012. But since then, meaningful findings have become scarce. But big questions remain, and simpler devices may actually be better at of finding certain answers....