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from the extraordinary-claims-require-extraordinary-evidence dept.
Shock result in particle experiment could spark physics revolution
Scientists just outside Chicago have found that the mass of a sub-atomic particle is not what it should be.
The measurement is the first conclusive experimental result that is at odds with one of the most important and successful theories of modern physics.
The team has found that the particle, known as a W boson, is more massive than the theories predicted.
[...] The scientists at the Fermilab Collider Detector (CDF) in Illinois have found only a tiny difference in the mass of the W Boson compared with what the theory says it should be - just 0.1%. But if confirmed by other experiments, the implications are enormous. The so-called Standard Model of particle physics has predicted the behaviour and properties of sub-atomic particles with no discrepancies whatsoever for fifty years. Until now.
CDF's other co-spokesperson, Prof Georgio Chiarelli, from INFN Sezione di Pisa, told BBC News that the research team could scarcely believe their eyes when they saw the results.
"No-one was expecting this. We thought maybe we got something wrong." But the researchers have painstakingly gone through their results and tried to look for errors. They found none.
The result, published in the journal Science, could be related to hints from other experiments at Fermilab and the Large Hadron Collider at the Swiss-French border. These, as yet unconfirmed results, also suggest deviations from the Standard Model, possibly as a result of an as yet undiscovered fifth force of nature at play.
Also at Nature and Ars Technica.
Journal Reference:
T. Aaltonen. S. Amerio. D. Amedei, et. al.,High-precision measurement of the W boson mass with the CDF II detector, Science, (DOI: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk1781)
(Score: 3, Informative) by corey on Sunday April 10 2022, @12:47PM (2 children)
Hmm this is so dramatised. I heard about this on the radio while driving (Triple J). They worded it totally sensationalist, like “our core understanding of the universe has just been shaken”, or something. So I looked it up on phys.org (not while driving, and just a website that first came to mind). It sounded much more mundane, here’s a couple of quotes:
“The new precision measurement, published in the journal Science, allows scientists to test the standard model of particle physics, the theoretical framework that describes nature at its most fundamental level. The result: The new mass value shows tension with the value scientists obtain using experimental and theoretical inputs in the context of the standard model.”
“ If confirmed, this measurement suggests the potential need for improvements to the standard model calculation or extensions to the model.
The new value is in agreement with many previous W boson mass measurements, but there are also some disagreements. Future measurements will be needed to shed more light on the result.”
https://phys.org/news/2022-04-precise-ever-boson-mass-standard.html [phys.org]
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Sunday April 10 2022, @04:24PM
I think you are misinterpreting. As scientists, we make statements of fact, such as "the potential need for improvements to the standard model calculation or extensions to the model."
Just as the discovery of general relativity was "an improvement in calculation of the motion of gravitating bodies", etc.
It is for the journalists to cook in the hype. The key plot is this one:
https://www.science.org/cms/10.1126/science.abk1781/asset/e7b0e22f-3889-40d7-b3dd-5d7ffff487ac/assets/images/large/science.abk1781-f5.jpg [science.org]
which shows tension at about 7 sigma with the standard model.
To remind you, the W boson mass is predicted by the Higgs mechanism and electroweak symmetry breaking stuff. If the W boson mass is not what it is supposed to be, then there is something we don't understand. Fifth force of nature or something. That's a pretty big deal, right?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 10 2022, @11:42PM
If they were pros they would speculate that this is possibly the missing Dark Mass.