Just 20% of CERN’s community are women, and CERN wants to improve on this. To encourage and attract more women to choose science, particularly physics, as a career CERN is holding events for both Gender in Physics Day (link is external) and the International Day of Women in Science (link is external).Last week, female scientists working at CERN visited local schools, to try to inspire the next generation of women in science.

It is said that privilege is invisible to the privileged, and not only is it difficult for the majority to recognise the insidious barriers of organisational culture that minority groups face, it is sometimes equally difficult for those within the minority who have succeeded in overcoming them to grasp. (…) Indeed, a woman who walks into a meeting room surrounded by photographs of only male scientists, picks up a document that says that “the masculine gender shall be understood as referring to both genders”, or works in an environment where all her superiors are male may well ask herself what would happen if the situation were reversed.

[Manuela Cirilli] laments the fact that women are still in a minority in laboratories, especially in positions of responsibility. “There is no magic formula. We have to promote careers in science, encourage women and, most importantly, show that when women are selected, it’s because they deserve it.”

宇宙創生の謎に迫る研究拠点として世界中の注目を浴びる「国際リニアコライダー」（ILC）。その建設に向けた検討が、文部科学省を中心に進んでいる。科学技術立国をめざす日本にとって大きな意義を持つだけに、議論の行方を注視したい。(International Linear Collider” (ILC) which draws attention all over the world as a research hub to approach the mystery of the universe. The examination for the construction is advanced mainly by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. I want to pay attention to the way of discussion just because it has great significance for Japan aiming at a science and technology nation.)

This year will prove to be an important one for the International Linear Collider project. All signs indicate that the Japanese national government will make their decision whether or not to host the ILC sometime from the end of 2017 to 2018. It is vital for all related parties to continue to urge the government to host the project, but we also must be prepared – if and when the green light is given to the ILC, all of us must be ready to “accelerate” ILC initiatives. To that end, Shigeki Chiba, Vice-governor of Iwate travelled to Europe in January 2017 to see some of its large scientific research facilities … and to glean insights that will be helpful as Iwate prepares an environment that can receive the ILC.

She also stressed the need for increasing awareness of the ILC among young people, as today’s middle and high school students may be leading ILC research by the time the facility is created.
Translation provided by Iwate & the ILC website. Read original article (in Japanese) here.

Der große Teilchenbeschleuniger bei Genf läuft noch bis zum Jahr 2035 auf Hochtouren. Doch irgendwann ist alles entdeckt, was sich damit entdecken lässt. Dann brauchen die Elementarteilchenphysiker etwas Stärkeres. Die Planungen laufen bereits. (paid content)

東北経済連合会は２５日、２０３０年を目標年次に、新潟を含む東北７県の将来像と戦略を描く新たな長期ビジョン「わきたつ東北～結び、はぐくみ、未来をひらく」を発表した。–「国際リニアコライダー（ＩＬＣ）」と東北放射光施設の誘致実現いった方策を列挙し、数値目標＝表＝を示した。(Tohoku Economic Federation published its long-term vision toward 2030, envisioned the future picture of 7 prefectures in Tohoku area by setting a strategies. The numerical target for each visions, include inviting the ILC and Tohoku Light source, was presented in the document.)

子どもたちがＩＬＣ＝国際リニアコライダーを描いた、絵画コンクールの表彰式が22日、岩手県奥州市で行われました。
このコンクールは岩手県県南広域振興局が行ったもので、２６４作品の応募がありました。 (The award ceremony for the ILC drawing competition was held on 22 January in Oshu city, Iwate Prefecture. 264 elementary school students submitted their artworks inspired by expected construction of the ILC.)

奥州市教育委員会が主催する「中学生科学体験研修」に参加している奥州市内の中学生３１人は、６日までの日程で学術研究施設が集積する茨城県つくば市を訪問している。５日は、高エネルギー加速器研究機構（ＫＥＫ、山内正則機構長）を訪問。北上山地が有力候補地となっている国際リニアコライダー（ＩＬＣ）とも関連性が高いさまざまな実験施設を目の当たりにし、最先端科学やＩＬＣ実現へのイメージを膨らませた。(31 Juniour high school students from Oshu city visited Tsukuba-city, a biggest science city in japan. On 5th January, they visited KEK and took a close look at the cutting -edge technologies related to ILC, filled with happy expectations)

Director Komamiya introduced the “staging” strategy talked about at LCWS, which would take an incremental approach in increasing the ILC’s capabilities. He said, “We can reduce construction costs to under 70% of the almost 1 trillion yen required by lowering the energy level of particle smashing experiments, and concentrating on precisely measuring of the Higgs particle.” He showed a draft of a more minimalist ILC that would reduce the 31 kilometer accelerator found in the base plan to a compact 20 kilometers.
Translation provided by Iwate & the ILC website. Read original article (in Japanese) here.