By Hala Karakany
What is the Higgs Boson?
Is it really the magical particle that can transform, or even “shapeshift” into multiple other particles, tearing down all laws of physics? Is it really the “God Particle?” Yes, undoubtedly you’re right! Surprised? Let’s do some more thorough investigation into the phenomenon of the Higgs Boson to help connect its “supernatural abilities” to our reality. Regardless of the commotion the discovery of the Higgs Boson has caused in the world of physics, its uses within the modern world are unclear, at first glance. If you search up the “Definition of the Higgs Boson”, you will discover that the Higgs Boson is undoubtedly a subatomic particle, whose existence was predicted by the theory which unified two crucial concepts in physics: the peculiar interaction between the electromagnetic force and the weak force. So how did technology contribute to the immense discovery of the Higgs Boson? To start off, and also to give a short answer to this question, the Higgs Boson was detected thanks to the ATLAS and CMS collaborations at CERN (one of the vital laboratories today, lying in Geneva, Switzerland). Surprisingly, the particle has a mass that exceeds that of protons by approximately 120 times. You might wonder: “If the Higgs Boson is such a heavy particle, why is it hard to detect?” The answer is quite unpredictable this time.
It is due to the almost supernatural phenomenon of the Higgs Boson, the mere fact that it has a lifetime of approximately ten to the power of negative twenty-two. Therefore, its existence – which was confirmed in 2012 – was unable to be verified until it was produced in a laboratory. Now, you might refer to the Higgs Boson as an “Artificial particle.” Although it is quite an unprofessional name that lacks scientific meticulousness, it is logically true in the eyes of non-physicists. Most particles that are not neutrons, electrons, or protons merely decay and quickly end their short-lived existence. However, the Higgs Boson can often transform itself into a variety of other particles. Now, you might think: “How could we tell that the particles we are observing are not merely the Higgs Boson’s collisions’ formation?” This is a brilliant question that, unfortunately, does not have a forthright answer by physicists. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), for instance, has contributed to finding a solution to this problem, a mathematical one. After particles’ collisions, their mass is accurately measured. When their mass corresponds to that of the Higgs Boson, scientists can forthright conclude that those particles were originally Higgs Bosons. However, the question remains partially unanswered. “How can we tell that a Higgs Boson will transform to a certain particle?” Disappointingly, the answer to this question is unknown, or let’s say, we do not know yet. Some often ask themselves: “Why should we spend billions on research and innovation?” And honestly — why? If millions around the world suffer from hunger and poverty, and lack access to primary education, why should finding another particle matter so much? The answer to this question is not lyrical. It is practical. If billions of dollars were conserved, rather than spent over failed attempts in developing vehicles, smartphones, planes, and lightbulbs, we would not have been exploiting the advantages of such items in today’s world. When speaking of a plane or a smartphone, you are speaking of the development of a unitasked technology. On the other hand, spending millions merely to utilize the Higgs Boson’s almost unlimited potential will open the doors of freedom, advancement, and power to all mankind. Scientifically speaking, the Higgs Boson’s characteristics are put into a comparison with the particles’ prediction that was emphasized in the Standard Model of Particle Physics. It is quite possible that the Higgs Boson’s characteristics might deviate from those conveyed in the Standard Model of Particle Physics. If this is the case, then the Higgs Boson has opened a new door for physicists to look for a variety of new particles, others that were never thought to exist. Also, it has caused an enormous breakthrough in the world of physics. The Higgs Boson was proved to be the source of mass in the universe, or the “mass provider” if that is an easier term to comprehend. Stars, planets, protons, electrons, and ummm – quite everything. Nothing would have never ceased to exist, nor get attached to one another, if it was not for the existence of the Higgs Boson. Widely speaking, the Higgs Boson is why our universe looks the way it is, moves the way it does, and its components interact the way they do. Thinking a hundred years from now, if the Higgs Boson became our tool of mastery, even the way the universe is shaped might get fully altered. You could say that mastering the use of the Higgs Boson is a way to “conquer the universe”.
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