When I was a senior in high school, my AP Physics teacher would sometimes have us write what she called PINs, or Physics In the News. These were short summaries of news articles relating to science and included a short analysis as well as some questions about the content. When I heard that this class was essentially more in-depth PINs, I told my adviser, “this is perfect, sign me up!” I remember writing a PIN on the discovery of the Higgs boson particle, although not much information was known yet. So, I decided to revisit that topic in this blog.
In March of 2013, scientists confirmed the existence of a particle they had assumed existed for a long time. The LA Times explained this concept in simpler terms. Often referred to as “the God particle,” the Higgs boson particle is part of the Higgs field, which is what causes other particles to have mass. The Higgs field came to being about one-trillionth of a second after The Big Bang occurred, and caused all of the mass-less particles to have a mass. Until last March, this was all merely speculation. Then, scientists found what they believed to be a particle that was in the Higgs field, called the Higgs boson particle.
An article on Buzzle explained it even better. The Higgs field acts like a barrier which slows down other particles, due to the fact that it “gives them” mass. What made it so hard to find, according to The Guardian, is that a Higgs boson particle almost immediately changes into different particles. What made it so important for them to find, is that it simply completed their assumptions and helped them better understand the universe. For me, the questions this raises include what other discoveries knowledge of the Higgs boson could lead to and what other questions this raises. Often in science, solving one question opens up many others.