You may have read recently that the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Europe recently started operations.  Contrary to the exaggerated concerns that black holes will form – as noted in this 2000 segment from The Daily Show – there was no such incident when the LHC powered up last month.

What did happen was a magnet failure, prompted by a problem with an electrical connection.  As the BBC reports, it will take a couple of months to properly assess and repair the problem(s).  The downtime is particularly critical for the LHC, because its electricity needs – roughly equivalent to enough power for all of the households in the Geneva area – limit the amount of time it can run during the year.

There is a long list of relatively small errors that have compromised large technological systems: the O-rings and the Challenger, the failure to convert units on a Mars probe, the Spruce Goose being just too heavy to fly.  This may or may not qualify as an error, but it does reinforce the notion that the larger and/or more complex a machine is, the easier it can be for things to go wrong.  It also reinforces the idea that it’s not only the large technical hurdles that matter when trying to innovate, but making sure every part functions effectively.