The God particle no longer a theory

[ugaas Ali]

HUMANITY'S understanding of the origin of the universe after the big bang has taken a historic leap forward with the discovery of a subatomic particle that scientists have been searching for and theorising about for almost 50 years.

 

In jubilant scenes in Geneva and Melbourne, physicists learned that scientists working at the $10 billion Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland had found what they believe to be the Higgs boson or "God particle".

 

The European Organisation for Nuclear Research, or CERN, announced the "milestone in the understanding of nature", saying it had found a new subatomic particle consistent with the Higgs boson.

 

"The next step will be to determine the precise nature of the particle and its significance for our understanding of the universe," a CERN statement said.

 

Peter Higgs, 83, the shy and softly spoken British physicist who, along with two other groups, published the conceptual groundwork for the particle in 1964, expressed his joy yesterday. He said he was "astounded at the amazing speed with which these results have emerged".

 

"They are a testament to the expertise of the researchers and elaborate technologies in place," he said.

 

"I never expected this to happen in my lifetime and shall ask my family to put some champagne in the fridge."

 

In Melbourne, at the High Energy Physics Conference, where, along with Geneva, the results were announced, young physicists Anna Kropivnitskaya, Konstantin Toms and Maria Toms laughed and said the new particle, or boson, was science, not science fiction.

 

"But it does improve our knowledge of the universe, the basis, the foundations," Konstantin Toms said.

 

"It means the Standard Model of particle physics is true and complete and we have discovered the last missing piece."

 

The discovery, by two separate teams, is hailed as virtual confirmation that the Standard Model of physics is correct, as the Higgs is a cornerstone of the model that describes the interactions of all known subatomic particles and forces.

 

The Standard Model is a highly successful theory but has had several gaps, the biggest of which is why some particles have mass but some, such as the photon, do not.

 

According to the Standard Model, the Higgs boson is the manifestation of the so-called Higgs field, an invisible energy field filling all space.

 

The Higgs gives mass to other subatomic particles such as protons, neutrons, quarks and leptons.

 

University of Melbourne particle physicist Geoff Taylor said it did this in a manner similar to the way water slowed down swimmers. "Subatomic particles feel the effect of the field like bodies moving through water. They gain mass, inertia," he said. The more a particle "feels" the field, the heaver it becomes.

 

The boson is believed to exist in a treacly, invisible, ubiquitous field created by the big bang 13.7 billion years ago. The discovery was made by two separate teams, analysing data from the Large Hadron Collider, a giant underground lab where protons were smashed together at nearly the speed of light, yielding subatomic debris that was scrutinised for signs of the fleeting Higgs.

 

Professor Taylor, who heads the Australian team participating in one of the two experiments - the A Toroidal LHC Apparatus or ATLAS - described the results as "fantastic" and confessed he'd put the champagne on ice in anticipation of the announcements.

 

Like the second experiment - the Compact Muon Solenoid detector - ATLAS was designed to search for the Higgs, using the Large Hadron Collider built by CERN between 1998 and 2008.

 

Two CERN labs, working independently of each other to avoid bias, found the new particle in the mass region of about 125-126 gigaelectronvolts, according to data they presented yesterday.

 

Both said the results were "five sigma", meaning there was just a 0.00006 per cent chance that what the two laboratories found was a mathematical quirk.

 

"The results are preliminary but the five sigma signal at around 125 GeV we're seeing is dramatic," said Joe Incandela, spokesman for one of the two experiments.

 

In the 48 years since Emeritus Professor Higgs and five other scientists predicted the existence of the boson, wild claims have been made for the "God particle".

 

Theoretical physicist Michio Kaku has said the discovery could begin to explain eternal questions sometimes called the mind of God: "To me, when we finally dicsover the 'God particle', this is just the beginning. This can open the floodgates for a whole new branch of theoretical physics.

 

"There are eternal questions that cannot be answered in the framework of conventional physics. Is time travel possible, are there gateways to other universes . . . are there parallel universes?"

[The-freeman]

I hope people do not misunderstand the discovery of the “God" particle means their deity has been scientifically proven. It is the opposite.

[Nin-Yaaban]

TL;DR

[tamer]

Stuff and nonsence

[GaraadMon]

It's great to see a physicist who lived long enough to see the experimental proof of his life's work. He'll likely win the Nobel Prize for physics this year.

[The-freeman]

tamer;848129 wrote:

Stuff and nonsence

Aka- I dun not reed to gud

[Mario B]

The-freeman;848125 wrote:

I hope people do not misunderstand the discovery of the “God" particle means their deity has been scientifically proven. It is the opposite.

God is the originator of heavens and earth. Atheist and polytheist since time immemorial have given divine power to natural phenomena, no different here.

[The-freeman]

Mario B;848205 wrote:

God is the originator of heavens and earth. Atheist and polytheist since time immemorial have given divine power to natural phenomena, no different here.

The difference,as this experiment demonstrates, is one is verifiable while the other isn't. Oranges and apples, to use a cliche.

[Mario B]

The-freeman;848228 wrote:

The difference,as this experiment demonstrates, is one is verifiable while the other isn't. Oranges and apples, to use a cliche.

And how does the discovery of another sub atomic particle prove there is no God?

[The-freeman]

Mario B;848229 wrote:

And how does the discovery of another sub atomic particle prove there is no God?

Nothing can disapprove god/s do not exist. This is also the case for leprechauns, fairies, unicorns..... the list is endless. A rational mind would say I withold believe until clear evidence suffices.

[Mario B]

The-freeman;848231 wrote:

Nothing can disapprove god/s do not exist. This is also the case for leprechauns, fairies, unicorns..... the list is endless. A rational mind would say I withold believe until clear evidence suffices.

Cliched reply as expected, it's also kinda retracts from your original claim. In the future, let science speak for itself, by not contaminating it with your personal prejudice. Thanks!!

[wyre]

Mario B;848232 wrote:

Cliched reply as expected, it's also kinda retracts from your original claim. In the future, let science speak for itself, by not contaminating it with your personal prejudice. Thanks!!

Dad Marqaan Baad La Murmeysaa :D

[Yunis]

@Mario,

 

You expect allot from atheist - Their rational is above explaining, for them to explain is to believe. That wheelchair bound crippled Prof. Hawking which all atheists huddle around has given up explaining the creation of evolution itself.

[The-freeman]

The funny thing is if a Scientologist were to assert that Xenu created the world you'll redicule him/her as a lunatic. Yet you're no different to him/her. Funny that.

[Yunis]

More pranks huh? Whats with equating Scientology founded by guy on seclusion in California desert in the mid 80’s and his Xenu with the asked question at hand of ‘explaining’ the clear prove of godless world due to finding of a small atom....