Einstein's Theory Was Proven True in My Little Louisiana Town
My middle-school visit to the LIGO facility to learn about gravitational waves from across the universe.
Southern bumpkin middle schoolers are on a field trip to see one of the most advanced scientific endeavors in human history.
It’s called LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory).
These sensors are trying to detect gravitational waves from the other side of the universe. By the time they get to us, they jiggle one of the two-mile laser beams only a thousandth of the length of a proton. So, you have to isolate your lasers from earthquakes, traffic, and any other sources of “noise.” That’s why it ends up in a very unlikely place — God-fearing, small-town Louisiana.
Me and my classmates weren’t aware of this cosmic drama. Mostly, we were just happy to be out of the classroom for a day. We attend a small private school in a two-hundred-year-old building that used to be a Civil War hospital. Here’s a photo:
Contrast that with the temple of scientific achievement we were witnessing:
