Gettin' my boson

Is it yet passe to comment on the Large Hadron Collider? Probably. But it's still a really weird and fascinating thing, so too bad.

The UK's Telegraph reported over the weekend that the scientists are soliciting catchier names for the 17-mile-long device, which rams subatomic particles into each other really fast, and almost certainly won't cause the earth to be swallowed by an accidental black hole.

The Telegraph's commenters came up with some decidedly snappy ideas:

• Mr. Smashy Pants
• The Big Banger
• The One Ring
• Kabloomitron
• Colliderscope
• The Rectumizer

At least a dozen of the cheeky blighters thought they were the first to notice the hilarity that would ensue if you transposed a couple of letters in "hadron." Wrong! Evidently that honor goes to a copy editor at the New York times.