The God Particle

On 4 July 2012 (today),  scientists from the CERN Hadron Collider  announced that they had produced a measurable particle consistent with the Higgs-Boson particle , also known as the “God Particle.”  As could be expected this has created a storm of discussion.  What does it all mean?

First, this discussion is not essentially religious in nature (except for those who already believe), even though the particle is commonly called the “God Particle.”  The particle was first predicted over fifty years ago (1964) by the atheist English physicist, Peter Higgs (b. 1929, England) to explain the behavior of sub-atomic particles.  The particle would fall into the category of particles known as bosons; named for the Indian physicist Satyendra Nath Bose 1894-1974.  Bosons are sub-atomic particles which are “force-carriers,”  ie: photons (particles of light), which carry the electromagnetic force; mesons, which carry nuclear forces, ;  gravitons, carriers of the gravitational force,; etc.  The Higgs Boson particle is associated with mass, which is similar to, but not exactly the same as, weight.  Mass is actually defined as “resistance to acceleration.”  The entire discussion is based largely on high level mathematics.

The “God Particle” name came from the book, The God Particle: If the Universe is the Answer, What Is the Question?, by Leon Lederman.  Lederman said he named the particle because it is “so central to the state of physics today, so crucial to our understanding of the structure of matter, yet so elusive.  … the publisher wouldn’t let us call it the Goddamn Particle though that might be a more appropriate title, given its villainous nature and the expense it is causing.”

Practical applications which theoretically could result from manipulation of the Higgs Boson particle and related particles include:

1.     Super-dense, super-hard, and super-light weighted materials.

2.     Super-heavy materials.

3.     Particle beam weapons and excavation equipment.

4.     Anti-gravity devices.

Some persons will see the religious implications of a particle which imparts physicality to a purely energy based reality just as some see the possible religious implications of laminin , a cross-shaped molecule which is involved in the connective tissue holding together all human tissue.