Research budget Memes

Ever tried to budget for a particle accelerator? That $9.16 billion price tag is actually a bargain compared to the real deal! The Large Hadron Collider cost around $4.75 billion to build—and that's before the electric bill arrives. This fictional "Catan Particle Accelerator" brilliantly captures the absurd reality of high-energy physics research: mind-blowing discoveries require equally mind-blowing budgets. The "make Higgs bosons" and "dark matter matters" bits are pure gold for anyone who's ever tried explaining their physics dissertation at a family dinner. "Just fire it up on weekends for some light R&R" is what every physicist secretly wishes they could do with billion-dollar equipment. Currently out of stock? Shocking!