Time machines, Stanley Greenberg
Stanley Greenberg explored the scientific infrastructures of the world for 5 years. In the time machines series he shows the diversity of these physics facilities. For example, the 15-foot bubble chamber was used to study and analyze elusive particles such as kaons or electrons. The CERN in Switzerland is also pictured, in particular the CMS (Compact Muon Solenoid) and its Akira-esque structure.
The CMS experiment is one of the largest international scientific collaborations in the world. The detector is built around a huge solenoid magnet, which is in the form of a cylindrical superconductive coil generating a magnetic field of 4 teslas, about 100,000 times the Earth’s magnetic field. This scientific device makes it possible to develop research on the particles that could constitute dark matter. And it is also known for its discoveries on the Higgs Boson.
All these scientific infrastructures are working facilities but they can also be seen as an architecture of science without equal. Above all, their uniqueness, their size, their thousands of tons, make them remarkable monumental megastructures. The singularity also comes from the fact that research in physics requires gigantic equipment to observe tiny particles. In the collective imagination, these accelerators and detectors are built to unlock the secrets of physics, time and space. For that reason, they can be compared to time machines. However, this series of photos is above all a reminder of how art and science can sometimes coexist, even in incongruous circumstances.
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