I know that the Higgs mechanism is intended to confer mass, but general relativity included mass through the stress-energy tensor as a fundamental constituent of the theory.
Any theory that supercedes general relativity has to include all that general relativity had to say it just seems weird that mass seems to be almost an afterthought in current efforts to find a theory of everything.
2007-06-15 20:31:16 · 4 answers · asked by mesun1408 6 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
General relativity works on macroscopic scales, but doesn't currently agree with quantum theory, which is the relevant theory at the scale of particle physics. In fact, our current understanding of particle physics does not include gravity at all. The Standard Model, which is our current best model of known particles and interactions requires another boson as a consequence of spontaneous electroweak symmetry breaking and to explain why some particles have mass and others do not (most notably the difference between photons and W and Z gauge bosons).
I think it's wrong to say mass is an afterthought, we know that particles have mass, but the Higgs mechanism is a way to explain *why*.
2007-06-16 00:11:43 · answer #1 · answered by kangaruth 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Higgs boson doesn't have to walk into a church. All it has to do is to start holding meetings and incorporate under the laws of some state to become a church and it is. All the noise over the alleged discovery of the particle (which it wasn't) is as fanatical as any religion's claims to having "the authentic Jesus." Added: I realized you were making a joke (smiling), but I'm not. From the reports that I've read, a lot of them border on religious fanaticism. And that's really, really sad, considering that science is usually unemotional about its processes, and quite logical. I'll admit that I enjoyed the chuckle, even though I'm not a Catholic.
2016-05-17 06:20:38 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Higgs boson is the Holy Grail of the Grand Unified Theory. Without finding it and understanding its nature, you can't integrate gravitation theory into the current Unified Theories, leading to the Theory of Everything.
2007-06-15 20:43:31 · answer #3 · answered by Superdude 5 · 0⤊ 3⤋
I think if bosons are confirmed with the LHC, it will give proof that we do live on a brane, which would be a big step toward better development or proof of M-theory
2007-06-15 20:45:57 · answer #4 · answered by guitar_gini 4 · 0⤊ 3⤋