Where the Higgs — or 'God particle' — was found – CNN.com
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/nelson.mandela.and.his.faith/34956.htm
Excerpt: The Star Thrower, Loren Eiseley
“There were just two men under a lamp, and around them a great waiting silence. Out to the ends of the universe, I thought fleetingly, that’s the way with man and his lamps. One has to huddle in, there’s so little light and so much space.â€
Last year scientists, at the CERN supercollider in Switzerland, announced the discovery of the “God Particle.†The world mostly welcomed the news with a yawn. The San Francisco Chronicle buried the article on the 4th page. CNN did justice to the discovery:
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“Adding to the mystique for the public — but to the horror of scientists — the Higgs boson took on the nickname “God particle” because of an eponymous book title (the author, physicist Leon Lederman, wrote that “Goddamn Particle” might have been more appropriate, but the publisher wouldn’t allow it).
South Africa is hosting a public memorial service for Nelson Mandela today. Four American presidents, hundreds of world dignitaries and hundreds of thousands of black and white South Africans will gather to celebrate his life. WOW!
 Henry Thoreau felt that the only hope for the world was for everyone to have a “born again experience†in nature. John Muir agreed and while I agree with them, not everyone is destined to have a wilderness experience. I would suggest that the only hope for the world lies in leaders like Nelson Mandela. After an injury, John Muir quipped, “Sometimes God has to nearly kill us to get us headed in the right direction.†Mandela would probably agree. When he was in prison he realized that unless he changed his attitude, he could not expect others to change theirs. He also wrote:
“As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew
if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.”
Einstein wrote:
“Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.â€
Although I never harbored any delusions of grandeur, I did encounter some somewhat violent opposition from people who thought that my attempt to encourage young minds to explore their own sense of spirituality was evil.
During my little, but fearful, battles, it was comforting to know that courageous men like Mandela were facing similar battles on a global scale.
My wife and close friends know that I struggled for months with whether to include chapters 28 and 29 in BOFAW. I knew that they would likely be misunderstood and I did not want them to detract from the 29 other chapters. In the end, even friends who are agnostic were adamant that the chapters be included.
While reflecting on Mandela’s life, even though I suspected that including those chapters would mean that the book will be banned from all public schools, I am at peace that I made the right decision.
Thank you Mr.Mandela. Your thoughts and deeds have inspired and encouraged millions of people and made the world a better place.