Blog Motivation No:1

Buffalos at Fermilab

I was blogging for almost a year about music, webdesign and physics but i decided to write more about high energy physics which is the main area that i am studying on.

It’s weird but the main reason that inspired me about physics blogging is the announcement at Fermilabs webpage:

“Physics is our mission, but buffalo may be Fermilab’s main attraction for visitors. What are buffalo doing at a physics laboratory? (The oft-told tale that they are Fermilab’s equivalent to the canary in the mineshaft, living Geiger counters to warn of radioactivity, is strictly fiction. The Fermilab site does not present a radiation hazard, and Fermilab buffalo do not glow in the dark.) Our buffalo herd carries on a tradition begun by Robert Wilson, the Laboratory’s first director, to recognize and strengthen Fermilab’s connection to our prairie heritage. Wilson brought the first American bison, a bull and four cows, to Fermilab in 1969; and in 1971 the Illinois Department of Conservation gave us 21 more. Today’s herd are descendants of those first animals. ”

A buffalo that glows in the dark would be great logo design for Fermilab. So simple and elegant. But the real danger is that i will mostly remember the Fermilab for these buffalos instead of top quark discovery or other achievements.