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butthurt [soylentnews.org] writes:

A University of California Irvine [uci.edu] press release promotes research into the decay of an isomer [wikipedia.org] of the short-lived radioisotope beryllium-8. [everything2.com]

Noting that

physicists propose "a 17 MeV protophobic gauge boson" (for comparison, an electron's mass is 0.51 MeV) to explain the observations, saying that the particle's existence could also account for a "discrepancy in the muon anomalous magnetic moment." The force conveyed by the particle is believed to only affect electrons and neutrons, and only at short distances.

further information:

• Evidence for a Protophobic Fifth Force from ⁸Be Nuclear Transitions [arxiv.org] (PDF)
• Particle Physics Models for the 17 MeV Anomaly in Beryllium Nuclear Decay [arxiv.org] (PDF)

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