Beijing, north of Chang'an Street.

In a solemnly decorated conference room, the old man in a tunic looked slightly moved after reading the report in his hand.

"Did Professor Xu really discover dark matter?"

Putting down the report in his hand, the old man looked up at Qin Anguo, who was standing at the desk, and asked.

Qin Anguo shook his head and said, "It seems that you can't say that." ”

After a pause, he looked at the other old man with half a hundred hair beside him, and continued: "I don't know much about this aspect, but Academician Liu is a professional, please explain it." ”

Beside him, the gray-haired old man nodded, and after a deep groan, he spoke: "Strictly speaking, this discovery cannot be counted as dark matter. ”

"Although the inert neutrino is theoretically one of the dark matter, it is not completely certain that this unknown particle must be dark matter."

"For example, as if we are mining, we can judge whether there are mineral deposits in this place and what kind of mineral deposits are from various information, such as vegetation, alteration of surrounding rocks near mines, ore heads, etc."

"The same is true for this discovery, so far, Professor Xu has only discovered this information, and he can make a judgment with a high probability."

"And more accurate determinations require more collision experiments and collision data."

In the conference room, the old man pondered for a moment and asked, "Then what is the probability of this?" ”

Academician Liu shook his head and said: "The probability of 3sigma is not too big to be found in the field of high-energy physics, and there are many discoveries that can reach this confidence level every year, and many of them are confirmed to be background clutter or useless information. ”

"Of course, this probability is not very low, and with this confidence level, it is indeed possible to continue to explore and study in depth."

"What's even more exciting is not the confidence of this 3sigma, but some of Professor Xu's theories and opinions."

"Before I came, I watched his press conference and report at NTU two days ago, in which Professor Xu made a very detailed analysis and exploration of this discovery, and the logic is self-consistent and in line with the theory."

"If you look at it from this aspect, it is indeed very likely that this discovery is the legendary inert neutrino."

"But no one can guarantee anything in this regard, after all, the results are really shocking, and they are related to dark matter."

"From the current level of technology and detectors, we simply cannot directly observe the existence of dark matter."

Hearing this, the old man fell into deep thought.

For Huaguo, if there is anything that is most lacking at present, it is undoubtedly energy.

In 2018, a total of 3.546 billion tons of coal were mined in China, ranking first among all countries in the world, and production is once again close to half of the world's total coal production.

And even so, it's still not enough.

China reportedly imported about 281.5 million tonnes of coal in 2018 (up 10.5 million tonnes or 3.9 percent year-on-year), compared with only 4.934 million tonnes of coal (coal and lignite) exported in the same period in 2018.

In this way, in 2018, the actual "consumption" of coal on the mainland was as high as 3,822.5 million tons.

Most of this coal is consumed in thermal power generation, heating, and steelmaking.

According to the average price of 500 yuan per ton of coal, the amount of money spent on coal alone reaches a terrifying 2 trillion yuan every year.

Such a massive consumption, even if it can drop by one or two percentages, it is quite exaggerated.

Therefore, in recent years, China has been seeking new energy sources, whether it is a large-scale photovoltaic power plant that does not belong to the Western Xinjiang Desert, a large-scale wind power station deployed in Inner Mongolia, or a nuclear energy that has moved towards the fourth generation of nuclear power, all of which are attempts to solve the energy crisis.

If dark matter, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the total mass of the universe, can be harnessed, there will be no worries about energy again.

Of course, the old man also knows that it is difficult and difficult to realize this wish, and there is a long way to go.

But as long as there is hope, Huaguo has never been afraid of difficulties!

In addition, if this discovery can really confirm that it is dark matter, it will be a new field that will change the world pattern.

Perhaps, the conservative policy needs to be changed.

At the very least, in a new field, Huaguo must step further.

To be backward is to be beaten, and one of the painful lessons of the last century is enough.

But before that, it might be prudent to ask that person's opinion first.

After all, professional things must always be done by professional people.

.........

Jinling, Nanda, Xu Chuan, who had just finished the report meeting, bid farewell to his alma mater and returned to the villa.

A 01 phone rang on the phone.

Fingers swiped across the screen, Xu Chuan connected the phone, and in the mobile phone, a voice that surprised him was transmitted.

"Hey, Professor Xu, are you busy?"

On the phone, the voice of an old man with a kind smile sounded in his ears.

Hearing this voice, Xu Chuan instantly reacted to who called him, and hurriedly said: "No, no, I just finished a report meeting at my alma mater, and this meeting has already arrived home." ”

"Have you had time lately? I'd like to ask you to come to the capital and ask for some advice.

The old man said with a smile on the phone: "Of course, if it's not convenient, I can go over it." ”

Xu Chuan hurriedly shook his head and said quickly: "Yes, I can go over at any time." ”

Let the old man on the phone run and make a joke.

The old man smiled: "Then trouble Professor Xu to make a trip, don't worry, it won't delay you for a long time." ”

.......

Hanging up the phone, Xu Chuan called Zheng Hai and asked him to help book a high-speed rail ticket to the capital.

Asked Zheng Hai to help book the ticket, he quickly packed his luggage, and the Great Elder personally called him to invite him to discuss the matter, which must be done as soon as possible.

Coming to the capital again, Xu Chuan dragged his luggage and checked into the Beihai Hotel, which was still the same room as before, and it seemed that it was set aside by this hotel, anyway, every time he came over, this room was there.

In the room, Xu Chuan opened the curtains, looked out the window at Beihai and the Forbidden City, and fell into deep thought.

There are only a few things that have to do with him.

Nuclear waste research projects, nuclear fusion, or, more recently, inert neutrinos and dark matter.

Each of these things has a grand relationship, and even if it is him, he will have to think carefully about tomorrow's answer.

Now, standing in his position, it can be said that every sentence has a great impact, and sometimes even a single suggestion can drive hundreds of millions of dollars

Therefore, it is necessary to think carefully in advance and develop the ability to be cautious in words and deeds.

.......

The next day, at three o'clock in the afternoon, under the leadership of the security personnel, Xu Chuan crossed the small river on the north side of Chang'an Avenue and came to this quaint two-story building again, and once again saw the old man who had often been seen on television and news media.

"Professor Xu, please take a seat."

Seeing Xu Chuan's arrival, the old man got up with a kind smile, shook his hand, and said with a smile: "I called you here temporarily this time, I hope it didn't disturb your research." ”

Xu Chuan hurriedly shook his head and said, "No, no, serving the country is the duty of any citizen." ”

In the main hall, after the two exchanged a few words, they didn't waste too much time and went straight to the point.

The old man pondered for a while and then spoke, "Professor Xu, there are two main things for bothering you to come over this time. ”

Xu Chuan: "Please speak." ”

"The first thing is about the controlled fusion project." As he spoke, the old man took a report from the guard beside him and handed it over.

Xu Chuan took the report from the old man's hand with a little confusion and looked through it.

"2020 Controlled Nuclear Fusion Project Investigation Report Document"

The red title caught his eye, making Xu Chuantongkong shrink suddenly.

The report handed to him by the old man was indeed very surprising to him.

It is indeed surprising that the high-level launch of a controlled nuclear fusion project has not yet been completed in the 'nuclear energy β radiation energy aggregation and conversion mechanism technology project'.

You must know that when it comes to controlled nuclear fusion, it is not at all comparable to nuclear waste reuse projects, whether it is the problem that needs to be solved, or the difficulty of scientific research, or the investment of money, manpower and material resources, it is not at the same level.

Not to mention the rest, ITER alone spent more than 30 billion meters of gold on completion, and billions of dollars have been thrown into it every year, but so far it has not burned a decent result.

There are similar projects in China, such as the Eastern Super Ring.

It is a fully superconducting non-circular section tokamak device that can generate more complex and flexible magnetic field configurations than ITER, allowing for the exploration of more optimized plasma parameters.

In 2018, that is, last year, the Eastern Super Ring EAST has set a new world record of 100 seconds of continuous confinement plasma.

Of course, this is only an experimental reactor, and its goal is to achieve long-pulse steady-state operation and provide technical support for the future construction of the Huaguo Nuclear Fusion Engineering Test Reactor (CFETD).

And from the report in his hand, Xu Chuan saw another independent controllable nuclear fusion project.

The report is quite blunt, and the new project is scheduled to start in 2020, which is separate from and on a par with the Huaguo Nuclear Fusion Engineering Test Reactor (CFETD).

As for the person in charge and which technical route to use, the report does not specify.

But there is no doubt that this is a big plan!

Another new and completely independent controllable nuclear fusion project, the investment can be said to be calculated in the tens of billions or even hundreds of billions.

.......

After reading the report in his hand, Xu Chuan looked up at the old man.

The old man smiled and said, "You know, our country has been working controlled nuclear fusion. ”

"However, this does not mean that hard work alone can work, we also need to solve problems in all aspects, and we need an excellent talent to walk in front and guide the direction."

"At present, there are a lot of domestic studies on controllable nuclear fusion, but they are relatively fragmented, and only CFETD projects are relatively complete."

"And the countries opposite us that are leading on the road to the study of controlled nuclear fusion, such as the United States and the Germanic countries, in addition to the ITER of international cooperation, have two or three different routes of research in their respective countries, and the United States even exceeds four complete directions."

"So after some discussion, we are ready to start another controlled fusion project."

"And this project, the current person in charge is to be determined, the technical route is also to be determined, and the senior management is waiting for the operation of the nuclear waste project led by you, and then come to discuss and decide."

The old man's words almost made it clear that this project was left to you.

Xu Chuan naturally heard this meaning, he nodded seriously, and said: "The 'Nuclear Energy β Radiation Energy Aggregation and Conversion Electrical Energy Mechanism Technology Project' has now entered the construction stage of the nuclear power plant, and the semiconductor radiation gap band material and crystalline erbium zirconate' materials have entered the process of expedited production. ”

"According to the plan, the whole will be completed in mid-to-late May this year, when a complete nuclear waste reuse power generation test can be launched."

"If all goes well, the overall acceptance is expected to be completed around September."

The old man nodded and said, "I'll leave these things to you, I'm at ease." ”

After a pause, he continued, "The second thing is about the research you did a few days ago, the inert neutrino and dark matter. ”

As he spoke, the old man sat up straight and asked, "I would like to inquire about related matters, such as what is the probability that it is dark matter, and if it is confirmed, when will we be able to use these things with dark matter and dark energy?" ”

"Also, if we want to do a deep study, is it necessary for us to build a large strong particle collider or something."

"I'd like to hear what you think about that."

Xu Chuan thought for a moment, and then said cautiously: "Regarding this discovery, you must have already understood. I won't say much about those detailed professional analyses. ”

"First of all, I can be sure that the collision data of the 13TEV energy level of the LHC does contain a new type of particle that has not yet been discovered by the scientific community. This particle is outside of the Standard Model. ”

"I can confirm this, compared to the things that have been published before, I still have some evidence that has not yet been published and sent."

"If you need verification, I can send it to you."

"Secondly, it is the probability of dark matter, I can't be sure, I can only say that from the data analysis, it has a high probability that it is part of the decay of dark matter."

"And the use of dark matter and dark energy, I'm afraid it's even more distant, at least I don't see any hope for a short time."

"After all, with the current technology, we can't even observe dark matter, understand its formation, properties, primary particles, etc."

"Maybe it won't be until decades or hundreds of years from now."

"As for building a large strong particle collider, I personally think it's still necessary, but not now."

Hearing this answer, the old man's eyes were slightly surprised, and he asked curiously, "What do you say?" ”

He and many others believe that as long as the country proposes to build a large strong particle collider, the scholar in front of him will definitely support it.

After all, he is a double major in mathematics and physics, and his achievements in physics are not weak, especially the results of this analysis of collision data, which shocked the world.

Unexpectedly, he opened his mouth to ask this question, but the answer he got was slightly biased.

This made him a little curious as to why the young man in front of him would say this.

.......