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back to article Austria pulls out of Large Hadron Collider

Austria has announced plans to pull out of CERN, the international science alliance which runs the world's most powerful particle-punisher - the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) - and whose people invented the world wide web. "I feel bad about every membership that we cannot keep up," said Science Minister Johannes Hahn on Friday, …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Paris Hilton

    Oh Vienna

    But surely the funding is just a midge's fart in the grand scheme of things? I suppose the image of a united Europe is gone, if it means nothing to them?

    Paris, I see silly season is here again.

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  2. Froemps

    Thanks

    for the Ultravoxian sub-headline :) Good one, Mr. Page.

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  3. M
    Go

    Goodbye Vienna...

    We will miss you :-(

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  4. blackworx
    Heart

    Subhead

    Large Hadron Collider to Midge Ure in one step. Well done that man.

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  5. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
    Black Helicopters

    It is not a good idea...

    ...to piss off people which might suddenly have the ability to throw traversable wormhole mouths at your parliament.

    "Yes, an unfortunate accident. Very tragic, the cause being due to the misalignment of the detector magnets. Now, about those funding proposals..."

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  6. Anonymous Coward
    Boffin

    World to Wooster!

    If Lord Wooster were to do the same, even in comparison to the protests about shutting down other endeavours (such as Jodrell Bank and various astronomy facilities), the outcry would be considerable, and a lot of boffins would go and work for various non-UK institutions in order to maintain their positions. The consequences wouldn't be great for UK research - certainly, stupid supercars with strap on rockets wouldn't exactly fill the void.

    I imagine that a number of Austrians will be working for other institutions come the next budgetary year.

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  7. chris
    Pirate

    brain drain

    Funny how we never hear sustained complaints of "brain drain" when science funding gets further cut, but put income tax back to mid-1980s levels and its all over the papers that our "finest minds" are taking their private jets off to Bermuda.

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  8. Wize

    Does this mean...

    ...we won't be getting sucked into that predicted black hole afterall?

    Did the ones who dropped the funding decide after waking up from a scary dream?

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  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    @chris

    I know what you mean. I wish all those people who keep threatening to leave the country if taxes go up would just bugger off now.

    Most of them are using loopholes to avoid paying it in the first place anyway, so they won't be missed.

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  10. Andus McCoatover

    Black holes and time warp??

    Aha. Now I see why Austria pulled out. (No, Paris, no!!)

    If the discovery of the "God particle" permits the discovery of black holes, which in true Star Trek fashion enables the discovery of time travel, they can shoot Hitler as soon as he appears, or at least finishes his crappy paintings.

    Forgot. Adolf wasn't Austrian. Well, he said he wasn't. Silly me.

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  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Not a good idea

    I get that governments along with people are trying to get through what are financially difficult times for everyone. However they need to remain diligent on funding some things as best they can. Yes things like the LHC are science for the sake of science (at least right now) however their research may well lead to more tangible benefits for all of us down the road. If governments are to short sighted they may well be shooting not just themselves but the rest of us by extension, in the foot.

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  12. Anonymous Coward
    Happy

    Oh no they won't

    Someone should probably note that this decision has been reversed

    http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/39128

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