Peter W. Higgs, A Nobel Prize and the Music of the Spheres

On Tuesday, two scientists (both in their 80’s) Peter W. Higgs of Scotland and Francois Englert, of Belgium were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.  Unlike the Nobel for Literature, which seems to go to any dull, obscure 2^nd world writer who sees the world as a forlorn and gloomy place, or the Nobel Peace Prize which has turned into a political joke with America as the punch line, the prizes in the hard sciences: physics, economics, chemistry, and medicine are genuine acknowledgments of expertise and merit.  Higgs and Englert are visionaries armed with solid theoretical and mathematical skills. 

The Higgs/Englert 1964 theory postulated a sensible answer to a 50 year old question in physics.  According to their modification of the Standard Model of physics (a labyrinth of equations with more Greek letters than an Athens primer) the universe is filled with energy that gives mass to particles that move through it.  [That whole E=mc² thing; neither mass nor energy can be destroyed, it simply changes form and gives off huge amounts of energy in the process.]  An enduring question for physicists concerned the weak electromagnetic force and how it could function at the sub-atomic level.  Higgs came up with an answer, the Higgs Field.

This cosmic lint roller fills sub-atomic space adding mass to particles along the way.  Particles that interact strongly with the Higgs field (like quarks) have a high mass; particles like electrons and neutrinos that interact weakly with the field have a low mass.  Particles, like photons, that don’t interact with the Higgs Field have no mass at all.  Without a Higgs Field, electrons would be without even their miniscule mass.  They would zip around at the speed of light and not orbit atom nuclei.  No electrons, no chemistry; no chemistry, no us. 

While photons are the particle given off by the electromagnetic field, the Higgs Boson is the particle given off by the Higgs field, and it is an illusive little creature, decaying almost instantly.  

On July 4, 2012, scientists at the Large Hadron Collider in Cern, Switzerland confirmed the presence of the Higgs Boson.  Just as Higgs predicted, the rapidly decaying Higgs Boson left a debris field of elements that proved its existence the same way dinosaur bones show us an animal none of us have ever seen.

I am in awe of the mental ability of Higgs and the parade of men who paved the way for his theory.  He could see something in an unseen world.  Then he used mathematical reasoning to prove that it made sense.  And he did all of this for the love of knowledge.  He did it because he could.  He did it because he was given a mind that can imagine, and reason and relate. 

We humans were meant to know this, but we were not meant to know it easily.  This kind of knowledge challenges mankind.  It makes us test ourselves on every level from physical to metaphysical.  It makes us better people through an appreciation of the music of the spheres. 

I am not smart enough to grasp, let alone create, this kind of thinking so it both humbles and inspires me.  I do believe in the elevating nature of knowledge for the sake of knowledge.  When I think of the term, “our better angels” I think of scientists like Peter W. Higgs.  In his words, “I hope this recognition of fundamental science will help raise awareness of the value of blue-sky research.”

Learning some science will help you keep the faith.