https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&feedformat=atom&user=Jgjacksonexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2026-04-16T10:51:03ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2007:_Brookhaven_RHIC&diff=1588502007: Brookhaven RHIC2018-06-15T16:32:21Z<p>Jgjackson: typo</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2007<br />
| date = June 15, 2018<br />
| title = Brookhaven RHIC<br />
| image = brookhaven_rhic.png<br />
| titletext = "Buddy, you trying to pull something? I can't buy this gold--all the electrons are missing. I could face serious charges!"<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a CASH FOR GOLD SALESMAN - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
The {{w|Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider}} is a particle accelerator designed to collide gold ions together at incredibly high speeds. This is normally done to study particle physics - the high-energy collisions allow us to learn more about how subatomic particles behave.<br />
<br />
Randall proposes that, instead of using the beam of gold ions for particle collisions, it should be diverted and sold at cash-for-gold stores to make money. The joke is that because they are traveling at relativistic speeds, the mass of the particles being sold will be much more than the mass of the ions being supplied to the collider's input. However, it would be very difficult to sell a beam of charged particles. The amount of gold involved is microscopic, and since the particle beam is moving at relativistic speeds, it wouldn't stay in the shop long enough to make a sale. It would also be very dangerous. This is probably why Brookhaven rejected Randall's proposal. Randall has done many comics describing impractical research proposals.<br />
<br />
The title text imagines the owner of the stores complaining about the sale, not because of impracticality, but because Randall is selling gold ions (including the entire positively-charged nucleus of the gold atom and 32 of 79 electrons stripped from the gold atom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relativistic_Heavy_Ion_Collider) instead of normal, electrically neutral gold atoms. This is a pun on the word "charges", which could refer to {{w|electric charge}} or to {{w|criminal charge|criminal charges}}.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Jgjacksonhttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=2007:_Brookhaven_RHIC&diff=1588492007: Brookhaven RHIC2018-06-15T16:29:35Z<p>Jgjackson: </p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 2007<br />
| date = June 15, 2018<br />
| title = Brookhaven RHIC<br />
| image = brookhaven_rhic.png<br />
| titletext = "Buddy, you trying to pull something? I can't buy this gold--all the electrons are missing. I could face serious charges!"<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Created by a CASH FOR GOLD SALESMAN - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
The {{w|Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider}} is a particle accelerator designed to collide gold ions together at incredibly high speeds. This is normally done to study particle physics - the high-energy collisions allow us to learn more about how subatomic particles behave.<br />
<br />
Randall proposes that, instead of using the beam of gold ions for particle collisions, it should be diverted and sold at cash-for-gold stores to make money. The joke is that because they are traveling at relativistic speeds, their mass of the particles being sold will be much more than the mass of the ions being supplied to the collider's input. However, it would be very difficult to sell a beam of charged particles. The amount of gold involved is microscopic, and since the particle beam is moving at relativistic speeds, it wouldn't stay in the shop long enough to make a sale. It would also be very dangerous. This is probably why Brookhaven rejected Randall's proposal. Randall has done many comics describing impractical research proposals.<br />
<br />
The title text imagines the owner of the stores complaining about the sale, not because of impracticality, but because Randall is selling gold ions (including the entire positively-charged nucleus of the gold atom and 32 of 79 electrons stripped from the gold atom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relativistic_Heavy_Ion_Collider) instead of normal, electrically neutral gold atoms. This is a pun on the word "charges", which could refer to {{w|electric charge}} or to {{w|criminal charge|criminal charges}}.<br />
==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Jgjackson