LHC reports discovery of its first new particle

I think the LHC is a very interesting facility. A new particle discovered.

[quote]The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) on the Franco-Swiss border has made its first clear observation of a new particle since opening in 2009.

Known as Chi-b (3P), it is a boson - the label given to particles that can carry the forces of nature.[/quote]

LHC reports discovery of its first new particle

…but the Higgs Boson is still missing. Oh God!

They may have caught a glimpse of the God particle.

We may have glimpsed the Higgs boson, say Cern scientists

Heavy on the “may”. They saw only an indicator of an effect that may be the result of the particle.

That’s really encouraging. Never heard of supersymetry before - it has a intuitive sound to it. This is right up there with the researcher who just found a bacteria and enzyme that suffocates a cell and causes it to eventually die - leading researchers to believe living for bonkers-length-amounts-of-time may be attainable in the coming years.

Of course, you’ll probably have to pay Proctor and Gamble a bazillion dollars for that, or the scientist will be sent to Mars and you’ll never hear about it again. Gotta love the world. Remember the news of a cure for the common cold? :stuck_out_tongue: LOL

The idea of supersymmetry has been around since the '70s and is based on the notion that all particles have spin. The bosonic particles are thought to have spins which are a whole number. The known matter particles (fermiontic particles) have spins of -1/2. Therefor the theory suggests that each particle has a superpartner, the pair adding up to the whole number spin.

I know, it sounds like gobbledygook, but even more, there are altogether five superstring theories. It is thought that eventually we’ll understand more and be able to rule out all but one.

If we’re made in His image, maybe the God particle is really a bozon.

Heh-heh. :smile: ++

Or…

http://zeldalily.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/bozo-statue.jpgN