Easy now!

November 26, 2004 11:36 PM

Good advice for all of us! Don't drink and lower heavy machinery into the particle physicists' orbed abyss. "If you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you."
posted by superposition (10 comments total)

That's right, kids! Liquor and quark-gluon plasma do not mix.
posted by mek at 11:40 PM on November 26, 2004

Man, there goes MY Saturday night!
posted by Samizdata at 11:53 PM on November 26, 2004

"...lunchtime gatherings where drinks but no food are served are dangerous, and care must be taken in the choice and quantity of the drinks that are available."

That is so French - 'It's OK to have a liquid lunch if you're using the particle accelerator after, just try not to get completely smashed.'
posted by apodo at 12:26 AM on November 27, 2004

My father used to tell a story about being invited to the Aerospatiale plant as a consultant in 1971. (He was an aerospace engineer.) They wanted his opinion on some QC problems they were having.

As he explained it, Aerospatiale sat its workers down for a two hour white-tablecloth lunch every day, with one bottle of red wine to split per every two seats.

After observing the way the factory ran for a few days, he concluded that "they spent most mornings fixing the damage they'd done the afternoon before." He recommended that the bottle:worker ratio be reduced to 1:4. Apparently the QC problems went away but the workers made quite a fuss over it.

My dad was prone to the occasional exaggeration, but I have no reason to doubt this one.
posted by ikkyu2 at 1:10 AM on November 27, 2004

Of course, CERN have enough experience of the real dangers of operating a particle accelerator under the influence of alcohol.
posted by Singular at 2:03 AM on November 27, 2004

Of course! Half-Life 3 needs to be at CERN!
posted by Pretty_Generic at 7:54 AM on November 27, 2004

They're waiting for you Dr. Freeman. In the test chamber.
posted by Foosnark at 8:34 AM on November 27, 2004

Sadly, it's a fact of life that booze has a tendency to complicate dealing with anything nuke related. The IAEA should therefore make damn sure that France paricipates in nothing more complex than eating.
posted by Cancergiggles at 9:28 AM on November 27, 2004

Gordon doesn't need to hear this. He's a highly trained professional.
posted by ArmyOfKittens at 10:13 AM on November 27, 2004

quarks are quick,
but liquor is quicker,
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 11:00 AM on November 27, 2004