As Latvia continues it’s path towards membership of the Center for European Nuclear Research (CERN), a delegation from the Ministry of Education and Science visited CERN on October 11 at the initiative of Toms Torims, a Professor at Riga Technical university (RTU) and CERN Scientific Associate.
Anita Muizniece, Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Science, was introduced with CERN activities and scientific achievements.
They were accompanied by the Ambassador of Latvia to the UN in Geneva, Janis Karklins and T. Torims. Latvian representatives met a large delegation of CERN scientists and representatives, including RTU PhD student and CERN Researcher Arturs Ivanovs.
During the visit, participation of Latvian scientists in CERN experiments, joint scientific projects and plans for future were discussed. The activities of CERN Baltic group were discussed and supported. The delegation visited the CMS experiment and CERN laboratories, and met Latvian scientists working at CERN. CERN expert group is invited to visit Latvia on November 20 to work on the application file and to coordinate the next steps. Latvian government has confirmed Latvia’s wish to start application as CERN Associate Member state December this year.
For 60 years, CERN has been a world leading science center with globally significant scientific breakthroughs. It is CERN that invented the Internet, but one of the most well-known inventions-the existence of Higgs boson, proven by the Large Hadron Collider six years ago. For Latvian scientists, membership in CERN will open up new opportunities to conduct research, participate in CERN scientific projects and to collaborate with other countries, and for doctoral students to develop their doctoral thesis at CERN, citadel for world’s physicists. Industry will be able to apply for CERN tenders as scientific activities require variety of technological equipment that can be supplied by Latvian companies.
Today, CERN welcomes Croatia as an Associate Member of CERN.
