TOI
NAGPUR: Last month has been exciting for the scientific community, with confirmation of the discovery of Higgs Boson particle, popularly known as the God particle. For the common man, however, the particle and its significance remains a mystery.
To clarify this concept, Raman Science Centre organized a popular science lecture on 'Fundamental Particles and Higgs Boson' for schoolchildren, said project coordinator of the centre Shrikant Pathak. Praveen Kumar Sharma, a scientist working at the city branch of Atomic Minerals Directorate (AMD), spoke about the God particle.
"The Boson particle was discovered after the phenomenon of cosmic rays was explained by scientists, including Homi Bhabha. One important type of this particle is the Higgs Boson. Identifying it is a great scientific milestone, as it can help unravel the mysteries of the universe," said Sharma. The composition of the world, mass-energy conversion, the enigma called Big Bang theory, can all be explained through this particle, he said.
Simplifying it for children, Sharma narrated one of the winning entries to explain the God particle. "Imagine a political gathering, with many groups of people. If someone powerful and important enters, the nearby 'cluster' gathers around her and resumes its conversation when she leaves the 'field of attraction'. This clustering explains how a particle's mass is generated. This important personality is like the Higgs' particle," he explained.
"It can explain sudden 'disappearances' of people in science fiction and mythologies; this can happen when mass is converted to energy. This will help arrive at the Theory of Everything (TOE) or the unification of all energies and forces in the universe," explained Sharma.
TOI
KOLKATA/GENEVA: The discovery of a new sub-atomic particle that is crucial to understanding how the universe is built announced in Geneva today has an intrinsic Indian connection.
A large number of Indian scientists, representing the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (SINP), Kolkata, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, Harishchandra Research Institute, Allahabad and Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, were involved in the world's most ambitious experiment over the years.
The Indian link to the world's ambitious experiment was also significantly reflected in comments ahead of the announcement by CERN scientists that a sub-atomic particle "consistent" with the Higgs boson or 'God particle' has been spotted.
"India is like a historic father of the project," said Paolo Giubellino, spokesperson of Geneva-based European Organisation for Nuclear Research, famously known as CERN.
As scientists thrashed out the 'God particle' in its physical form in a giant collider, there was palpable excitement at SINP since its scientists had made significant contributions to the development of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiments at CERN.
The long-sought particle, known as Higgs boson, is also partly named after an Indian scientist Satyendra Nath Bose, who worked with Albert Einstein in the 1920s and made discoveries that led to the most coveted prize in particle physics.
Stating that it was a historical moment in physics and SINP took pride in being a part of the history, the Institute irector Milan Sanyal said "It will require more data and intense scrutiny to establish these findings beyond any doubt.
"This is an important moment for the development of science and I am very happy that our institute, this city and our country is part of the science revolution," he told PTI in Kolkata.
He said that the core CMS team of the SINP had five faculty members — group leader Prof Sunanda Banerjee, Prof Satyaki Bhattacharya, Prof Suchandra Datta, Prof Subir Sarkar and Prof Manoj Saran.
The phrase "God particle" was coined by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman but is used by laymen, not physicists, as an easier way of explaining how the subatomic universe works and got started.
Meanwhile, Cosmologist Archan Majumder, who is attached with the S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, today termed the spotting of the sub-atomic particle "consistent" with the 'God Particle' as a victory for human civilization.
"The discovery is revolutionary in human history. This is a great victory of the fundamental knowledge of human civilization," Majumder told here.
The 'God Particle' of Higgs Boson is regarded as key to understanding the formation of the universe.
"There has been a strong indication of finding the much-awaited new subatomic particle which, though requiring more and more experiments for confirmation in coming years, will go a long way in unravelling the mystery of the evolution of the universe," he said.
Besides scientists from the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, those from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, Harishchandra Research Institute, Allahabad and Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, were involved in the CERN experiment over the years, he said.
TOI
KOLKATA/GENEVA: The discovery of a new sub-atomic particle that is crucial to understanding how the universe is built announced in Geneva today has an intrinsic Indian connection.
A large number of Indian scientists, representing the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (SINP), Kolkata, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, Harishchandra Research Institute, Allahabad and Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, were involved in the world's most ambitious experiment over the years.
The Indian link to the world's ambitious experiment was also significantly reflected in comments ahead of the announcement by CERN scientists that a sub-atomic particle "consistent" with the Higgs boson or 'God particle' has been spotted.
"India is like a historic father of the project," said Paolo Giubellino, spokesperson of Geneva-based European Organisation for Nuclear Research, famously known as CERN.
As scientists thrashed out the 'God particle' in its physical form in a giant collider, there was palpable excitement at SINP since its scientists had made significant contributions to the development of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiments at CERN.
The long-sought particle, known as Higgs boson, is also partly named after an Indian scientist Satyendra Nath Bose, who worked with Albert Einstein in the 1920s and made discoveries that led to the most coveted prize in particle physics.
Stating that it was a historical moment in physics and SINP took pride in being a part of the history, the Institute irector Milan Sanyal said "It will require more data and intense scrutiny to establish these findings beyond any doubt.
"This is an important moment for the development of science and I am very happy that our institute, this city and our country is part of the science revolution," he told PTI in Kolkata.
He said that the core CMS team of the SINP had five faculty members — group leader Prof Sunanda Banerjee, Prof Satyaki Bhattacharya, Prof Suchandra Datta, Prof Subir Sarkar and Prof Manoj Saran.
The phrase "God particle" was coined by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman but is used by laymen, not physicists, as an easier way of explaining how the subatomic universe works and got started.
Meanwhile, Cosmologist Archan Majumder, who is attached with the S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, today termed the spotting of the sub-atomic particle "consistent" with the 'God Particle' as a victory for human civilization.
"The discovery is revolutionary in human history. This is a great victory of the fundamental knowledge of human civilization," Majumder told here.
The 'God Particle' of Higgs Boson is regarded as key to understanding the formation of the universe.
"There has been a strong indication of finding the much-awaited new subatomic particle which, though requiring more and more experiments for confirmation in coming years, will go a long way in unravelling the mystery of the evolution of the universe," he said.
Besides scientists from the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, those from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, Harishchandra Research Institute, Allahabad and Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, were involved in the CERN experiment over the years, he said.
