CERN: A window of opportunity Usman Ali Khan Thursday, June 27, 2013 - The prospect of Pakistan’s joining the world’s most classified and prestigious particle physics laboratory CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) as an associate member is a matter of great pleasure. NCP and PAEC have been involved in the scientific and technical program of CERN off and on. This Cooperation of Pakistan with CERN underlines the importance of scientific research and higher education for economic and technological development for Pakistan. It will also expand their collaborative research activities with foreign universities and institutes. Former CERN director-general Victor Weisskopf wrote in his book “The Joy of Insight” that anybody who enters CERN should be regarded as European and no longer a citizen of any nation! Pakistan would join the ranks amongst the 20 member states of CERN. The informal scientific co-operation between CERN and Pakistan dates back to the 1960s, when Pakistan was introduced to CERN through Dr. Abdus Salam – Pakistan’s first Nobel laureate. The CERN project is studying the basic constituents of matter, its fundamental particles – by using the world’s state of the art instruments. The experiments are source of great revelations for the scientists. It provides clues about the particles interaction and provides an insight into the fundamental laws of nature. Mutually beneficial cooperation between CERN and Pakistan is poised for expansion in related areas in the coming years. Pakistani scientists are also among those proud fellows who were widely applauded for the most ambitious experiment – Dr Abdus Salam led this horde. As many as 30 Pakistani scientists working at CERN made visible contribution in the research that has finally led to discover the Higgs Boson, also nicknamed the “God particle.” The challenges for Pakistan are unprecedented, stimulating some of the best minds to develop new ideas and technologies which can lead to both obvious benefits through direct knowledge exchange.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Jul 2013 23:35:54 +0000
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