I THINK THAT A DREAM LIKE THAT WILL NEVER COME BACK
Students from the fourth class of the High School “E. Majorana “of Lampedusa, with Prof. P. Dragonetti e R. Genco, were at CERN from 20 to 27 February 2017, as a part of the Extreme Energy Events (EEE) project, and the school/work project “Hunting muons ” which involves the Pirandello Lampedusa Institute and the Centro Fermi in Rome.
During the week spent at CERN students were enthusiast, doing their best for the construction of the chambers of the telescope that soon will be hosted at their home institution in Lampedusa. They attended and took part to the various activities included in the program: an experimental session for data analysis of Geiger counters, a masterclass using data from EEE telescopes, the assembling of a cloud chamber and finally the construction of the three chambers for the cosmic rays telescope.
Work in the laboratory was exciting, thanks to the skills of all tutors who followed the work of the students, explaining them how all actions performed during the construction were essential to the perfect chamber functionality.
Exceptional meetings marked the permanence of the students at CERN: Prof. Zichichi who lectured them for more than an hour leaving them all fascinated, the general director of CERN Fabiola Gianotti, who finally gave up to the insistent mails from the students and welcomed them into her office for a nice chat, and Maria Fidecaro, who told them about her many years of experience at CERN as a women in the world of physics.
In addition, the students from Lampedusa had the privilege to visit the extraordinary ALICE experiment and when reaching the underground area of the experiment they felt as entering the “Physics Wonderland”.
Students declare:
“The permanence at CERN has been a great experience, full of emotions, values and teachings that will accompany us for the rest of our life. In addition to the training received in the laboratory, it has allowed us to develop various techniques and new ideas to expand our limits, which now have become our goals “.
“I believe I have never lived an experience like this. I live on a little island and this does not allow young people to meet different people. At CERN, however, there is no language or race that can limit communication. It is amazing to be surrounded by so much culture. Everyone is there for just one purpose, and they do not care if you’re black or white, the most important thing is to share knowledge”.
In the words of Prof. P. Dragonetti
“I was for the first time at CERN in November 2015 for the ITP (Italian Teacher Program), and even if I’m a math teacher I felt in love with this world of real research. Here I knew about the EEE project and the opportunity for students to take part to an international scientific project and to be the protagonists. This dream now has become a reality and, just like the students wrote on the last chamber of our telescope – I think that a dream like that will never come back -. Living it was sensational! I do not know if any of the students who participated in this experience one day will become a physicist or work at CERN, but I am sure they will never forget this week that has given countless emotions to all of us, including the Teacher!”
Edited by Rosalba Amato, Rosanna Spina
Delegation of Pirandello Institute at the CERN
