God or Higgs particle may have been discovered at CERN

[kgun]

Scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) announced Wednesday at the CERN research centre have found a new subatomic particle that could be the Higgs boson, the basic building block of the universe.



“I can confirm that a particle has been discovered that is consistent with the Higgs boson theory,” said John Womersley, chief executive of Britain’s Science & Technology Facilities Council, at an event in London.

Source: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/07...uncement-live/

A New Particle Could Be Physics’ Holy Grail

ASPEN, Colo. — Physicists working at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider said Wednesday that they had discovered a new subatomic particle that looks for all the world like the Higgs boson, a potential key to an understanding of why elementary particles have mass and indeed to the existence of diversity and life in the universe.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/05/sc...pagewanted=all

CERN pages:

http://cms.web.cern.ch/news/observat...e-mass-125-gev

http://press.web.cern.ch/press/Press.../PR17.12E.html

http://webcast.web.cern.ch/webcast/

Additional links:

http://www.calgaryherald.com/technol...706/story.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/l...-happened.html

See also the related WPW thread:

http://www.webproworld.com/webmaster...r-and-Big-Bang

[morestar]

So what's the end result of this kgun? What should we expect as a whole in the near or distant future because of particle crashing experiment? I'm right interested in all the news that floats around about the collider but I don't know what the end result will be.

GOD? Where? What?

[creatip]

It's about finding physical evidence to back up -- or, even more challenging, disprove -- the mathematical equations of the “Standard Model” of the universe.

[alanf]

Solipsism - the philosophy that the only thing that I can be sure to exist is my own mind, everything else, my body, the world, you, even your response to this post, my mind could be making up.

What convinces me sometimes I am right, is that some of the amazing discoveries came in my lifetime, but then sometimes I wonder why I made up things like the 'EU cookie directive', maybe just for my minds entertainment

[weegillis]

It's about finding physical evidence to back up -- or, even more challenging, disprove -- the mathematical equations of the “Standard Model” of the universe.

Did you follow any of the links in the OP, or refer back to the earlier thread that was mentioned? It's not about this at all. It's about asking questions and using our best understanding to devise ways and means of getting at their answers. Science is not out to prove or disprove anything.

The Higgs Field is thought to be the elementary force that interacts with matter to give it mass. It interacts with all matter, be it a proton or an electron; ergo, they both have mass. It is this level (Higgs' particle & field) at which scientists wish to be able to formulate their hypotheses, and work their way back up through matter/energy, space and time--the universe. It is in some respects the key to understanding the genesis of the universe; this is the reason behind the moniker, 'God Particle'.

As for the standard model, well, like the universe it is ever changing, and at this time is only a collection of loosely fitting models, and hardly a standard. Today's potential discovery will be the basis of still another model, which will reveal still further mysteries that need to be solved.

As for the math, again, it's not about challenging or disproving it; it's about studying the unfolding implications as we peer deeper into the smallest crevices of space and time. What does the math suggest? This has led to many significant discoveries in quantum mechanics, cosmology and even economics and set theory (chaos).

Einstein couldn't prove any of his theories, but they all emerged out of the mathematics he was studying. The further study of the math by future generations has resulted in many of his theories being proven true, and led to deeper understanding of the universe (big or small) and new hypotheses and experiments that yielded still more knowledge to the sea of knowledge--and more questions, mostly because the math begs of it. Nobody ever set out to disprove Einstein or any other scientist, only to answer the questions they could not.

[creatip]

sez weegilis: "Science is not out to prove or disprove anything." -- this is probably the most hilarious nonsense ever uttered since the Big Bang. As for the rest of what you wrote, let's just say that a 5th grader would laugh his derriere off ...

[Tubby]

I do not understand the mathematical models. . I do have a simple self understanding that answers all of the questions that these scientist seek to my own satisfaction . .

Higgs boson (totally beyond my comprehension)
My own simple explanation to the question of where does matter come from is 'child like simple' and matches my own capabilities, curiosities and emotional requirements. Matter is simply decayed time.

Sometimes we have to wait a good number of years to find out what each new discovery actually means. The Discovery of the Higgs Boson probably means that your Ipod in 2060 will not have a case or a container, maybe no physical properties at all . . . and it will just hover near you awaiting use. ( or not)

[weegillis]

sez weegilis: "Science is not out to prove or disprove anything." -- this is probably the most hilarious nonsense ever uttered since the Big Bang. As for the rest of what you wrote, let's just say that a 5th grader would laugh his derriere off ...

That's the idea. Now give us the high school version.

[weegillis]

... Matter is simply decayed time. ...

Simple. No kidding. Easy to picture? Not. 300,000,000 years (or so) for the soup to cool and for there to be enough 'decayed time' scattered about to begin formation of stars and then of galaxies which process continues to this day, which brings up the question: If there was no time at the instant of the Big Bang, what is there to decay?

[creatip]

That's the idea. Now give us the high school version.

Well, the (very) short version of it would sound something like this: every kid AND his grandma knows that theories (whether mathematical or otherwise) are out there to be proved or disproved. Just try and google up the keywords "theory" and "science."

2. Einstein was mediocre at math, he always begged for help. Rumor has it that he had some .. 'visions'
3. Like any other theory, Einstein's one/s was/were repeatedly scientifically verified.
4. If the universe is ever changing then there is no Standard Model?! So you mean that if car1 starts driving from point A to point B the laws of speed will change just cuz the driver used the brake (and, therefore, didn't drive at the same speed)?
5. You also say, "Nobody ever set out to disprove Einstein or any other scientist." -- there are countless examples (way more than minutes that you've been alive) when scientists tried to disprove other scientists. WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT????!!!