Literature in Focus - Gli anelli del sapere = The Rings of Knowledge + The LHC bible


A fascinating photographic survey describes the essential phases of constructing the colossal equipment to build the four main experiments. It is enriched by a sophisticated, experimental graphic design and the stories of the Italian scientists from the INFN (National Institute of Nuclear Physics), who made vital contributions to the project and constructing the LHC. The book is completed by descriptions illustrating the important contribution that Italian companies made to this major project, demonstrating Italy’s competitive capacity for excellence in the most important technological undertakings in Europe.
Edited by Federico Brunetti (Politecnico di Milano)
Published by Editrice Abitare Segesta


The presentation of the book will take place on Tuesday, 9th March, 4.00 p.m.
in the Pas Perdus area. At the same time, the INFN photo exhibition installed in the occasion of the International Women's day will also be inaugurated.

A reception will be sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Italy to the International Organizations in Geneva



Literature in Focus -
The LHC bible

Seven major articles on the LHC and its detectors, published electronically in a special issue of the Journal of Instrumentation, form the complete scientific documentation on the design and construction of the entire LHC project.

This landmark publication is probably the first time that a major new accelerator project has been documented in such a comprehensive, coherent and up-to-date manner prior to going into operation. The papers should for many years to come serve as key references for the stream of scientific results that will begin to emerge from the LHC after the first collisions this year. It was therefore decided also to produce printed copies of this article collection – the result is a beautiful two volume edition comprising some 1600 pages. Last week the whole lot arrived at CERN and is now ready for distribution. Each of the LHC collaborations has bought a set of copies to be given to their participating institutions and CERN will ensure that the books are included in all relevant libraries around the world. Personal copies can be obtained from the CERN Bookshop, hosted in the Library, for 20 CHF per set.

Concerning the electronic version, although published in a refereed scientific journal, the articles are completely free to download and read online under an Open Access scheme, without requiring a journal subscription (http://www.iop.org/EJ/journal/-page=extra.lhc/jinst).

To celebrate the arrival of the hard copies, the Library invites you to a "Literature in Focus" event, where the editors of the different articles will highlight the significance of these technical publications and the process the collaborations have gone through in setting up the mechanisms for handling the authoring process of papers with such large author lists.

The CERN Large Hadron Collider: Accelerator and Experiments,
CERN, 2009
Edited by Amos Breskin and Rüdiger Voss
CERN Library, Building 52, 1st floor
March 11th at 16.00
The presentation will be followed by a drink.


by Tullio Basaglia