Picture the scene: We've all had a few and are sitting in a pub garden in Cheltenham, talking about everything from Formula 1 and business to fish tanks. We've all done it.
Just bear in mind the Guinness-science Influence Scale™ ... After about 2 pints, having a wild stab at some scientific solution or how some new technology works is a must. After four pints, you've got your honourary doctorate in your pocket amongst the subway loyalty cards, odd five dollar bills and Irish Punts. You're just not wearing your labcoat today.
After eight pints you're practically giving lectures to lesser minds at CERN and need not be bothered with actual sober facts.
So eventually conversation turns to the Higgs-Boson 'god' particle, detours off into socio-political discussion about the theocracy of the southern United States, eventually meandering back to this new particle discovery.
Now the explanations start; we're all firing wildly - [please imagine a vodka induced slur on top of commentary] "It's like, it's like, when you're building a house, and the fire department turn up. No. Wait. Mortar. Yeh. That's it."
One of our group points out that her dad is a retired particle physicist and may possibly know better than us mere mortals.
Asking an actual expert is a long shot, granted, but worth a punt. So to the question "Can you explain what this higgs-boson god particle is in only one text message?"
He replies:
"As I haven't kept up with particle physics I can only give you a few basic principals and guess about the Higgs boson. All matter is made up of fermions and bosons. You can only have one fermion in any one energy state but you can have multiple bosons, so fermions (e.g. a proton) provide the structure and bosons provide the forces of nature (eg photons are the agent of electromagnetic force which is responsible for most of what we perceive in the world...chemistry, light, electronics, etc). Most particles have a mass which can be converted to energy (E=mc squared) and their conglomerate mass makes them subject to gravity, a very weak force but obviously effective on cosmological scales. The big question is where does mass come from and the Higgs boson was postulated as being responsible for giving particles their mass. Hope that helps.
Love Dad xx
Can I get back to cooking my risotto now?"
Every single person in the conversation then exclaims that they were right all along.
That avenue of conversation securely closed, we resolved grand unified theory and the definitive history of life itself over chasers.
Thanks to Sezzle and Das Fletchenberger for the great night out (and lack of hangover this time).
Just bear in mind the Guinness-science Influence Scale™ ... After about 2 pints, having a wild stab at some scientific solution or how some new technology works is a must. After four pints, you've got your honourary doctorate in your pocket amongst the subway loyalty cards, odd five dollar bills and Irish Punts. You're just not wearing your labcoat today.
After eight pints you're practically giving lectures to lesser minds at CERN and need not be bothered with actual sober facts.
So eventually conversation turns to the Higgs-Boson 'god' particle, detours off into socio-political discussion about the theocracy of the southern United States, eventually meandering back to this new particle discovery.
Now the explanations start; we're all firing wildly - [please imagine a vodka induced slur on top of commentary] "It's like, it's like, when you're building a house, and the fire department turn up. No. Wait. Mortar. Yeh. That's it."
One of our group points out that her dad is a retired particle physicist and may possibly know better than us mere mortals.
Asking an actual expert is a long shot, granted, but worth a punt. So to the question "Can you explain what this higgs-boson god particle is in only one text message?"
He replies:
"As I haven't kept up with particle physics I can only give you a few basic principals and guess about the Higgs boson. All matter is made up of fermions and bosons. You can only have one fermion in any one energy state but you can have multiple bosons, so fermions (e.g. a proton) provide the structure and bosons provide the forces of nature (eg photons are the agent of electromagnetic force which is responsible for most of what we perceive in the world...chemistry, light, electronics, etc). Most particles have a mass which can be converted to energy (E=mc squared) and their conglomerate mass makes them subject to gravity, a very weak force but obviously effective on cosmological scales. The big question is where does mass come from and the Higgs boson was postulated as being responsible for giving particles their mass. Hope that helps.
Love Dad xx
Can I get back to cooking my risotto now?"
Every single person in the conversation then exclaims that they were right all along.
That avenue of conversation securely closed, we resolved grand unified theory and the definitive history of life itself over chasers.
Thanks to Sezzle and Das Fletchenberger for the great night out (and lack of hangover this time).
