Revealing the Hidden Nature of Space and Time Charting the Course for Elementary Particle Physics (2006) / Chapter Skim
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4. The Strategic Framework
4. The Strategic Framework
Pages 101-117
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From page 101... ...
This framework is based both on the unusually ex citing scientific challenges now facing particle physics and on the committee's belief that a strong role in this area is necessary if the nation is to sustain its leadership in science and technology over the long term. The committee's chief findings and recommended action items, which appear in the next chapter, are based on the strategic framework and budget scenarios presented in this chapter.
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From page 102... ...
The U.S. program in elementary particle physics is therefore at a crossroads.
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The community of particle physicists has a strong tradition in this area, but that tradition needs to be enhanced. There is an increasing need for particle physics programs in the United States and elsewhere to take fuller advantage of important experiments proceeding in other countries.
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Any large scientific project carries additional risks because new experiments push technol ogy to new frontiers. In this respect, however, elementary particle physicists have accumulated an enviable record in meeting technological challenges.
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Strategic Principle 1: The National Importance of Elementary Particle Phys ics. The committee affirms the intrinsic value of elementary particle physics as part of the broader scientific and technological enterprise and identifies it as a key priority within the physical sciences.
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The U.S. program in elementary par ticle physics should be characterized by a commitment to leadership within the global particle physics enterprise.
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Second, unless the United States undertakes the challenge of leadership, scientists here will be unable to work effectively with their colleagues abroad. As asserted in Allocating Federal Funds for Science and Technology, "Science is a global enterprise in which the United States must participate, for its own benefit and for that of the world."3 However, owing to the increasing capabilities of particle physics research programs in other countries, as well as the increasing cost of experiments, it is neither desirable nor feasible for the United States, or any other country, to host experimental facilities in every area of elementary particle physics.
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From page 108... ...
The next generation of experiments will require more complex and expensive experimental facilities, including underground laboratory spaces for neutrino physics, dark matter searches, and proton decay experiments; possible upgrades of the LHC accelerator and detectors; intense neutrino beams and associated detec tors for a second generation of long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments; ground- and space-based efforts for particle astrophysics experiments; a possible future super-B factory; and, most ambitious of all, the ILC. One testament to the success of the pooling of international (predominantly European)
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From page 109... ...
The last of these characteristics deserves special emphasis. A broad array of scientific opportunities exists in elementary particle physics, and it is not possible 5This emergent strategy is not unique to particle physics.
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From page 110... ...
Thus, it is important to maintain a diverse and comprehensive portfolio of research activities -- from theory to accelerator R&D to the construction of new experimental facilities to efforts to probe entirely new areas. Two of the greatest discoveries of the last decade -- the discovery of nonzero neutrino masses and of dark energy -- were completely unexpected, underscoring the need for a variety of approaches to current scientific challenges.
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From page 111... ...
Another example of this tradition is the historical stewardship of accelerator science and technology by the nation's elementary particle physics program. Particle accelerators continue to affect a broad spectrum of scientific and technological activities.
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The Secretary of Energy and the Director of the National Science Foundation, working with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Of fice of Management and Budget and in consultation with the relevant au thorization and appropriations committees of Congress, should, as a matter of strategic policy establish a 10- to 15-year budget plan for the elementary particle physics program. 7NAS, NAE, IOM, Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future, Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2005 (Prepublication)
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A strong and vital Fermilab is an essential element of U.S. leadership in elementary particle physics.
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A standing national program committee should be established to evaluate the merits of specific projects and to make recommendations to DOE and NSF about the national particle physics program in the context of international efforts. The changing environment in particle physics requires a reexamination of the advisory structure for the field.
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From page 115... ...
Such a coherent national advisory role could be played by an existing element of the high-energy physics program's advisory apparatus, such as a P5 committee that has been modified by transforming it into a standing committee with a broader mandate. The details of the specific advisory structure should be left to the agencies involved.
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From page 116... ...
, as recommended in Rising Above the Gathering Storm. Both of these policies would reflect a national decision to increase the level of effort because the scientific opportunities in the physical sciences, especially in elementary particle physics, are currently so compelling.
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new elementary particle physics initiatives that address the most exciting scientific challenges. In a budget scenario that returns to real growth, it will be possible to achieve a position of distinctive leadership within a worldwide program and to support a diverse set of experiments that address current scientific questions more fully than is possible in the constant-effort scenario.
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