Beamline for Schools Competition 2015 Launches Today

CERN is famous for the Higgs boson discovery and the invention of the World Wide Web, but there’s much more to the laboratory than that. A large part of CERN’s research and development is carried out at so-called fixed-target beamlines. These projects range from investigating the inner workings of protons to probing the mysteries of antimatter. In 2015, CERN will once again be making a fully equipped beamline available for schools. Beam time will be allocated to the one or more teams that win the 2015 beamline for schools contest.

The competition is open to high-school students aged 16 or older, in teams of up to 30 students, nine of whom would – if their team wins – come to CERN to run their experiments.

Teams may be composed of students from a single school, or a number of schools working together. Proposals will be pre-selected by a committee of CERN scientists, with the short list being sent on to the SPS and PS experiments Committee (SPSC), the committee that validates all proposals for experiments at the laboratory’s SPS and PS accelerators.

The first step is to register your team and tell us why you think you should win time to conduct your experiments on the beamline. Registration closes at midnight CET on 31 January 2015.

The second step involves submitting a two-part proposal: a written proposal and a 1-minute video about your proposed experiment. The deadline for submitting the experiment proposals is midnight CET on 31 March 2015.

For more information about how to apply and to read about the winning teams from 2014 see the beamline for schools website.

The beamline for schools team will hold a Google+ hangout in English on 4 December 2014 at 5pm CET on CERN’s YouTube channel. Researchers from CERN as well as last year's winning teams will be on hand to answer questions.

Good luck!

Featured

  • El Paso District Breaks Ground on New Elementary School

    The Canutillo Independent School District in El Paso, Texas, recently announced that construction has begun on a 119,000-square-foot elementary school, according to a news release. The district partnered with Pfluger Architects, Carl Daniel Architects, and LDCM Solutions on the new Davenport Elementary School, which has an expected completion date of 2027.

  • Texas State University Completes Stadium Renovations

    Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, recently announced that it has completed a series of additions and renovations to its football stadium, according to a news release. Formerly known as the Bobcat Stadium End Zone Complex, the Johnny and Nathali Weisman Football Performance Center is an 85,000-square-foot expansion featuring hospitality spaces, banquet spaces, exterior concourses, and upgrades to the field house.

  • iPark 87

    Building a Future-Focused Career and Technical Education Center

    A district superintendent shares his team's journey to aligning student passions with workforce demands, and why their new CTE center could be a model for districts nationwide.

  • concentric silhouettes of a human head

    How Physical Space Shapes the Mind: Designing for Better Learning Outcomes

    Research in environmental psychology and neuroscience increasingly suggests that the way a room is designed can influence memory, focus, or even a student's sense of belonging.