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

  • Embry-Riddle Completes Construction on Research, Lab Facility

    Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Daytona Beach, Fla., recently announced the end of construction on a new research and lab facility on campus. The Center for Aerospace Engineering II (CAT II) will support aerospace research and technology development and broke ground last summer.

  • Dallas ISD Voters Approve $6.2B Bond Package

    Dallas ISD voters have approved a record-setting $6.2-billion bond package that district leaders say will modernize aging campuses, eliminate portable classrooms and reshape learning environments across one of the nation’s largest school systems.

  • UCF Modernizes College of Hospitality Management

    The University of Central Florida in Orlando, Fla., recently completed a major renovation effort for the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, according to a news release. The project modernized 77,600 square feet worth of academic classrooms, teaching labs, and collaborative spaces to support both students and faculty.

  • Rethinking K-12 Schools as a Continuous Learning Experience

    Most students move through three or more separate facilities during their K-12 journey, yet the built environments they encounter at each stage have traditionally been designed in isolation, with little continuity in spatial language, learning philosophy, or physical resources. Each new school is a reset with different layouts, learning models, expectations, and ways of moving through a building. The next generation of school design is making the case that the first day of kindergarten and the last day of high school can and should feel connected through common support systems and infrastructure in the physical environment.