Big Science and the Large Hadron Collider

TL;DR

This paper reviews the emergence, methodologies, costs, and societal benefits of Big Science projects like the Large Hadron Collider, emphasizing their importance despite high costs.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive analysis of Big Science, comparing it with Small Science, and discusses its societal value and implications.

Findings

Big Science has evolved through specific historical processes.

Large projects like the LHC significantly advance science and technology.

Big Science offers societal benefits that justify its costs.

Abstract

The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the particle accelerator operating at CERN, is probably the most complex and ambitious scientific project ever accomplished by humanity. The sheer size of the enterprise, in terms of financial and human resources, naturally raises the question whether society should support such costly basic-research programs. I address this question here by first reviewing the process that led to the emergence of Big Science and the role of large projects in the development of science and technology. I then compare the methodologies of Small and Big Science, emphasizing their mutual linkage. Finally, after examining the cost of Big Science projects, I highlight several general aspects of their beneficial implications for society.