Introductory talk Particle accelerators have a history, do they have a future?

Abstract

This talk outlines some of the challenges tomorrow's particle accelerator proponents will face in establishing the technical, financial and political feasibility of future higher energy machines. The next step in e ⁺ e ⁻ collliders takes accelerator technology into a domain where new frontiers in the handling of particle beams must be crossed. Limits also begin to appear in the energy of pp colliders, and radical new approaches will be required of the physicists designing detectors. It is suggested that greater efforts need to be made to communicate the intrinsic interest of science to the public at large, and to put the planning of future major facilities in the world on a clearly rational basis. Finally, illustrations from the history of science show that there is nothing new in the need to defend curiosity-driven research. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A3418228 00007