To observe as many b quarks as possible, the physicists use an electron synchrotron to accelerate lightweight electrons and positrons, the positively charged antimatter equivalents of electrons, to nearly the speed of light before injecting them into the storage ring. The two streams of particles pass through each other more than a million times per second. Eventually, an electron and a positron crash into each other, creating a burst of energy that gives rise to much heavier particles containing b quarks. Sensitive particle detectors record the paths and energy of the particles, and sophisticated computer software helps physicists analyze the results. Thorndike has been intrigued by the smallest forms of matter since his days as a graduate student at Harvard University.
Particle physics is a lot like mountain climbing.
It's the pursuit or challenge of it that draws you in. You'll find that a disproportionate number of physicists hike or climb mountains. Thorndike joined the College in 1961 and established his own research program. In 1969, he won a National Science Foundation senior postdoctoral fellowship, enabling him to study at the European Center for Nuclear Research in Geneva, Switzerland. The annual award, one of the highest given to an experimental physicist, was established in 1985 in honor of W. K. H. Panofsky, a former director of the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center at Stanford University.