The God Particle by Richard Cox Page B

kidding.”
    “So you asked her about
Huckleberry Finn
? What else did you guys talk about?”
    “Special relativity.”
    “Special relativity.”
    “Will you stop that?”
    “Why the hell did you talk to her about special relativity?”
    “Because she asked me about Einstein,” Mike explains.
    “Did you even know who she was?”
    “No. I don’t get Channel Eight. Of course I didn’t know who she was.”
    “He didn’t know who she was! Did you hear that, ladies and gentlemen? He didn’t—”
    Just then Landon Donovan walks in, barrel-chested in his metallic-gray Armani. Behind him stands a Japanese woman dressed in black pants and cream-color blouse, her black hair pulled into a tight, shiny bun.
    “Gentlemen,” Donovan says with his typical drama. “I’d like you to meet someone.”
    Mike and Larry stand. Donovan escorts the woman into the room until all four of them are gathered around the desk.
    “This is Samantha Aizen. Perhaps you guys have heard of her work over at CERN.”
    Of course we’ve heard of her work, Mike thinks. CERN is only the second-largest particle physics facility in the world. Before he can say anything, though, Larry steps forward and takes her hand.
    “Yes. Ms. Aizen, I’ve heard so much about you. I’m Larry Adams, and this is Mike McNair.”
    Mike leans across his desk and shakes her hand.
    “I believe we’ve met, Ms. Aizen. In Finland, wasn’t it?”
    “Yes,” she smiles. “At EPS. But please, call me Samantha. Or Sam, if you like.”
    “Samantha has been an important part of the team at CERN for several years now,” Donovan explains, as if he missed the previous ten seconds of conversation, as if he didn’t just hear Mike and Larry acknowledge her work. “She’s been working to optimize luminosity for the Large Hadron Collider.”
    “That’s fantastic,” Larry says.
    “I think she’s the perfect person to help us solve our own luminosity problems,” Donovan adds.
    Mike could see this coming from ten miles away, considering Donovan’s constant intervention in matters best left to actual physicists. He wonders what sort of title Samantha was promised, and how much money Donovan spent to get her. He wonders what Paul Funk, the Beam division head, will say when he hears of this unexpected new hire.
    “We’re always thankful to have someone else on the team,” Mike offers. “Anything to help find Higgs.”
    Samantha smiles. “I was explaining to Mr. Donovan that even though our ring is much smaller than yours, we plan to compensate for that lower energy with much higher luminosity. But since higher luminosity can create stability problems, we’ve had to come up with novel ideas to counteract this effect. From what Mr. Donovan has told me, and after reviewing some of the data from your last few runs, I think I might be able to offer some possible solutions.”
    “Well, like I said, our goal is to identify Higgs. Anything you can do to help us would be welcome.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Samantha is going to be our new Beam division head,” Donovan announces.
    “I’m sorry?” Mike says. “What about Paul?”
    “Paul agreed to take on a new assignment. The NTSSC will continue to enjoy his valuable insight and intelligence in another area.”
    “What area?” Mike asks.
    “It’s going to be a hectic morning,” Donovan says. “I still need to introduce Samantha to our other team leaders. Thanks for your time, gentlemen.”
    Mike and Larry shake hands again with Samantha, and then wait in silence until they hear Donovan enter another office, well out of earshot.
    “Agreed to take a new assignment?” Larry squeals.
    “How can he reassign one of my team leaders and not tell me?”
    “Because he’s an armchair physicist. If he didn’t have so damn much money—”
    “If he didn’t have so much money we wouldn’t be here. But still, you’d think he’d at least come to me before. . . . God, Paul must be devastated. I wonder why he hasn’t