Thursday, May 23rd 05:34 PM IST
 

Higgs Boson is much ado about nothing

Akshaya Mishra

It is a five sigma result alright and we have no reason to doubt the scientists at CERN. They have every reason to be proud of establishing the existence of Higg’s boson, the subatomic particle that gives all matter in the universe size and shape. But what does the great discovery mean to ordinary folks like us? Does it translate into something concrete in term of benefits to the mankind? Is it as great a scientific feat as the electric bulb or penicillin or the steam engine? Scientists are yet to offer convincing answers to the questions. The success of scientific feats is defined by how effective they are at changing the lives of people for the better. Higg’s boson does not promise us anything. The excitement over it is clearly misplaced. read less read more

Durga Raghunath

While at this point it is hard to predict the useful applications of the properties of the Higgs Boson particle, this is really about understanding what fundamentally drives the universe. That search, while an expensive one, is an important one. Physicists across the world are comparing its significance to the discovery of ‘quarks’ which made us understand the symmetry of the universe. Science will constantly make investments for the future. We must have patience with this one. read less read more