US atom smasher may have found new force of nature

[Kadie]

US atom smasher may have found new force of nature
by Kerry Sheridan – 2 hrs 37 mins ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Data from a major US atom smasher lab may have revealed a new elementary particle, or potentially a new force of nature, one of the physicists involved in the discovery told AFP on Wednesday.

The physics world was abuzz with excitement over the findings, which could offer clues to the persistent riddle of mass and how objects obtain it -- one of the most sought-after answers in all of physics.

But experts cautioned that more analysis was needed to uncover the true nature of the discovery, which comes as part of an ongoing experiment with proton and antiproton collisions to understand the workings of the universe.

"There could be some new force beyond the force that we know," said Giovanni Punzi, a physicist with the international research team that is analyzing the data from the US Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory.

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110406/ts_afp/scienceusphysics_20110406175834

[LiberalEsto]

1. Oh boy, something new to blow up the planet!

Just in case the current methods aren't powerful enough.

[villager]

3. exactly -- there'll be plenty of "public" funds available to weaponize it

n/t

[socialist_n_TN]

20. Ah yes. Something else for the capitalists to make.......

money off of. The MIC NEEDS another doomsday device to ramp up the next bubble. Good for business you know! :sarcasm:

[NeedleCast]

4. Please Be Joking

Plesae...please...

[LiberalEsto]

15. I was

but I'm getting more cynical with each day as the Fukushima nightmare continues

[Warren DeMontague]

8. Yes, knowledge is always, inherently bad.

Really, we're better off not knowing anything, about anything.

[provis99]

16. at least cavemen weren't in danger of blowing up the planet.

[NeedleCast]

17. They were just in danger of tons of other things

that are now preventable, thanks to science.

[dixiegrrrrl]

23. How do you KNOW they did not kill of the dinosauars, eh?

:sarcasm:

[Tesha]

25. Everybody knows what really killed-off the dinosaurs!

[dixiegrrrrl]

26. **Snort**

:rofl: :rofl:

[DearAbby]

31. Or clean cheap energy

[joeunderdog]

2. I think it's Rove.

He's the one behind everything.

[Bill McBlueState]

5. classic science journalism mistake

The Hubble image at your link has NOTHING to do with the report! They just picked something sciencey.

Oh well, it's still pretty cool that a US-based accelerator found something new.

[FLPanhandle]

9. I don't think the average journalist can tell the difference

Science reporting has gone the way of the ether.

[Brickbat]

14. IIRC, Yahoo images are generated automatically.

So the journalism mistake would be getting rid of any semblance of a copy editor to give something the once-over so it doesn't look stupid. PLEASE, WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF THE PROFITS?

[Bill McBlueState]

22. didn't realize that --

it would explain a few bizarre image choices I've seen in Yahoo's science articles.

[Brickbat]

27. Yeah, it gets pretty dismal sometimes -- and not just in science, or on Yahoo.

Many websites seem to specialize in putting inappropriate -- to the point of tastelessness -- images with some articles.

[Warren DeMontague]

6. And I'm the first one in the thread to say it:

Charlie Sheen!

[FLPanhandle]

7. Cool

This is a good use of public money

[davidthegnome]

10. Interesting...

The force is strong with this one.

(Sorry, I couldn't resist)

[Taverner]

11. Does this mean warp speed in our lifetime?

A man can dream, can't he?

[xchrom]

12. Recommend

[girl gone mad]

13. Here's a preprint from the arXiv, if you guys are interested..

http://arxiv.org/abs/1104.0699

More information should be forthcoming shortly.

[girl gone mad]

18. Watching Fermilab talk live now..

it's half over, but the questions have been good..

http://vms-db-srv.fnal.gov/fmi/xsl/VMS_Site_2/000Return/video/r_embed_flash2.xsl?&-recid=573&-find=

they will put the archive up later, if you missed it and want to watch from the beginning.

[girl gone mad]

21. Definitely not higgs..

possibly a new type of Z’, as theorized in http://arxiv.org/abs/arXiv:1103.6035">this paper from a week ago (which was based on Vivianna's PhD thesis).

I am very, very happy at even the slightest possibility of something that gets us away from new physics, where theorists are hitting so many dead ends. These last few years have been good for HEP and the "battle" between Fermilab and LHC has meant that these types of results get published quickly where previously they might have been withheld indefinitely.

[madrchsod]

19. i go by that place at least once a month and never take the tour

maybe i`ll have to break down and do that....

[Rage for Order]

24. Hah! Suck it CERN!!!! n/t

[joshcryer]

28. Just watched the talk, but it was 99% over my head. Viviana Cavaliere is amazing.

Not only beautiful physically but intellectually, as well. So cool.

[Rex]

29. I heard it is called the 'money quark'.

It helps labs keep up and running during a horrible economy.

[Angry Dragon]

30. The God particle