Tag Archives: higgs boson

Higgs Boson Watch Puts the God Particle on Your Wrist

Posted on by

While you might think you need to be a physicist with a particle accelerator to experience the elusive Higgs Boson particle, you’re right. But if you’d like to pay tribute to the recent accomplishments of the CMS and ATLAS teams at the Large Hadron Collider, then grab this watch.

higgs boson 1

The ultimate in geeky timepieces, the Higgs Boson watch displays a spiraling display which is supposed to represent the so-called “God Particle,” without which, not a single atom would hold together in the universe, and we wouldn’t exist. While I’m not sure how accurate the design is, it can definitely tell time.

higgs boson animation

Best of all, this thing will cost you way less than building your own backyard particle accelerator. It’s just $39.95(USD) over at Gadgets & Gear. Nobel Prize sold separately.


Higgs Boson Jigsaw Puzzle

Posted on by

higgs boson puzzle Higgs Boson Jigsaw Puzzle
Recreate the “God Particle” right in your own home with this Higgs boson Photo Jigsaw Puzzle Higgs Boson Jigsaw Puzzle. Not only is this a super geeky puzzle, it’s also pretty good looking and probably difficult to solve. It features 252 pieces in the 10″ by 14″ with conceptual artwork from the Science Photo Library. For those who have no idea what the Higgs boson is, join the crowd and just enjoy the pretty picture. For those more scientifically inclined, you know it’s the hottest particle of 2012 by far (sorry tau neutrino, maybe next year).

buy now Higgs Boson Jigsaw Puzzle

Higgs Boson Jigsaw Puzzle


Alt-week 8.4.12: buckyballs, bosons and bodily fluids

Posted on by

Alt-week peels back the covers on some of the more curious sci-tech stories from the last seven days.

alt-week 8.4.12

Remember when we told you last week that we live in a strange world? Well, we had no idea what we were talking about. Seriously, things are about to get a whole lot weirder. High school is certainly a head-scratcher, no matter how old you are, but the mathematics of social hierarchies can't hold a candle to the mysteries of the buckyball. And, if the strange behavior of the familiar carbon molecule isn't enough for you, we've got an entirely new molecule to contend with, while the once-elusive Higgs Boson is getting us closer to unlocking the secrets of the universe. It's all pretty heady stuff, which is why we're also gonna take a quick detour to the world of human waste. This is alt-week.

Continue reading Alt-week 8.4.12: buckyballs, bosons and bodily fluids

Filed under: ,

Alt-week 8.4.12: buckyballs, bosons and bodily fluids originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Stephen Hawking lost $100 Bet on Higgs Boson Discovery

Posted on by

Yesterday the CERN announced that they found Higgs Boson particle (God Particle). They are still holding back on a 100% confirmation. It is for sure though a new particle. If it matches really all...

Higgs Boson found by CERN LHC

Posted on by

CERN is holding right now a live seminar in front of a crowded auditorium full of nerds and media. The ATLAS and CMS experiments deliver the preliminary results of their 2012 data analysis from the...

CERN confirms existence of new particle consistent with Higgs boson (video)

Posted on by

CERN confirms existence of new particle consistent with Higgs boson

Physics' big announcement had more in common with a leaky product launch than the serious business of re-writing the science books. But slack asset management aside, it's official: a new boson has been observed with a standard deviation of 5 (confidence of 99.9%). The highly anticipated announcement came this morning direct from CERN's press conference (via ICHEP in Melbourne,) and is the result of an intense, ongoing search for the elusive particle. The observation is of a boson particle with a mass of 125.3 ± 0.6 GeV, at a significance of 4.9 sigma. Joe Incandela -- giving the presentation -- said that this is "In agreement with the standard model at 95% confidence range." The boson is the heaviest ever found, and although this is still a preliminary result, it's by far the strongest case yet for the existence of the elusive Higgs.

The sought-after particle is essential for supporting the current understanding of sub-atomic world, and its bearing on nuclear, and electromagnetic interactions. The next stage will be to determine the exact characteristics of the new particle and whether it matches the expectations of the Higgs, or is it in fact something more "exotic." This part will take much more time, but for now, a (very) small, but important piece of the puzzle has been found.

Update: We're sure you've got many questions, and CERN apparently anticipated this. Check out the more coverage link for a helpful FAQ about everything Higgs.

[Image credit: CERN]

Continue reading CERN confirms existence of new particle consistent with Higgs boson (video)

CERN confirms existence of new particle consistent with Higgs boson (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Jul 2012 03:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceCERN (webcast)  | Email this | Comments

CERN update on its search for Higgs boson starts at 3AM ET (video)

Posted on by

The cat would appear to be out of the bag, but if you must find out about the status of the Higgs boson search ASAP, check the video stream (embedded after the break) as CERN scientists reveal whatever it is they've found. The webcast is scheduled to kick off at 2:55AM ET, as a prelude to this year's ICHEP particle physics conference in Melbourne. Whenever the announcement comes we'll be sure to let you know, check the links below for more information.

Update: So yeah, they've found a new particle "consistent with Higgs boson," check out all the details here.

Continue reading CERN update on its search for Higgs boson starts at 3AM ET (video)

CERN update on its search for Higgs boson starts at 3AM ET (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Jul 2012 02:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceCERN  | Email this | Comments

Higgs boson just may, possibly, more or less be proven to exist by ATLAS and CMS teams

Posted on by

Higgs boson just may, possibly, more or less be proven by ATLAS and CMS teams

We had a false alarm over the possible discovery of the theory-unifying Higgs boson last year, but a bit of poking and prodding in subsequent months may well have given us much more definitive evidence of the elusive particle. According to some rare rumors emerging from Nature, both CERN's ATLAS and CMS detectors have seen particle decay signals suggesting the existence of Higgs to within a 4.5 to 5 sigma level of proof -- in other words, very nearly concrete evidence. That's not quite the 5-plus needed to settle the matter, but it's to a much higher level of certainty than before. As if to add fuel to the fire, ScienceNews even located a briefly posted, CERN-made video (sadly, since pulled) saying bluntly that the CMS team had "observed a new particle."

Whether or not there's any substance is another matter. Nature hears that scientists are supposedly still working out what to say at an event on Wednesday, while CERN has made the slightly odd claim to ScienceNews that the yanked video is just one of several pre-recorded segments made to cover possible outcomes -- you know, in that "Dewey defeats Truman" sort of way. Unless the scientists have to go back to the drawing board, though, the focus from now on may be more on learning how Higgs behaves than its very existence. Any significant truth could see researchers proving the validity of the standard model of physics just as we're firing up our Independence Day barbecues.

Higgs boson just may, possibly, more or less be proven to exist by ATLAS and CMS teams originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink New Scientist, Ars Technica  |  sourceNature, ScienceNews  | Email this | Comments