Stephen Hawking and the God Particle

[Tommygun]

I came across a short article about Stephen Hawking warning that the God particle could destroy the universe.

There isn't much to this article and I can't find much better with a google search.

Does anyone know of a more detailed source?

Original story:

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/15126/20140908/stephen-hawking-god-particle.htm

[K^2]

Hawking makes a lot of exaggerated claims that should come with a novella-worth of foot notes. Predicting what happens at these energies to vacuum is far beyond the methods we have. We cannot even estimate zero point energy properly. So this prediction, if anything, tells you how weak the model is. And without better context, it is hard to say that this was not his point to begin with.

[Tommygun]

Yes, that's why I would like to get more information.

It may just be a brief high light of something longer and more mundane overall.

[Aningaaq]

I came across a short article about Stephen Hawking warning that the God particle could destroy the universe.

There isn't much to this article and I can't find much better with a google search.

Does anyone know of a more detailed source?

Original story:

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/15126/20140908/stephen-hawking-god-particle.htm

Most of the articles I've seen are just as short. The longer ones seem to have quotes from other people about the Higgs particle. I thought it was funny how he said the field of physics was boring after they observed the particle.

Joseph Lykken, a theoretical physicist at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, Illinois

"On the other hand it may already happened, and the bubble might be on its way here now. And you won't know because it's going at the speed of light so there's not going to be any warning."

Physicists love to scare the crap out of people it seems . Well, any publicity is good publicity right?

[Tommygun]

Physicists love to scare the crap out of people it seems . Well, any publicity is good publicity right?

That made me think of the first atomic test where the physicist were making bets on if the bomb would set the Earth's atmosphere on fire, I think just to scare the military guys.

[peadar1987]

I'm not particularly worried. If it doesn't happen, no problem. If it does happen, it's not exactly like we'll know about it.

[lajoswinkler]

Don't call it "God particle", because that's a stupid name. It's Higgs boson. It has zero connections to any concept of deity.

[N_las]

Probably some ignorant journalists putting things out of context, just like here:

http://xkcd.com/799/

[m4v]

Probably some ignorant journalists putting things out of context, just like here:

http://xkcd.com/799/

Obviously, IF IT DOESN'T BRING ARMAGEDDON IT ISN'T INTERESTING or something like that.

[Jesrad]

This idea is the premise for Greg Egan's book "Schild's Ladder", which contains layman-accessible explanations of the whole deal.

[Wanderfound]

Don't call it "God particle", because that's a stupid name. It's Higgs boson. It has zero connections to any concept of deity.

The Higgs was originally dubbed "the God particle" because the scientists working on it had got into the habit of calling it "the Goddamned particle" but they didn't think that was a good look when they were speaking to journalists.

The other version, which is apparently apocryphal, is that the Higgs was dubbed "the God particle" because both God and the Higgs "are the reason why we have Mass".

(hardcore atheist here, but I can appreciate a good Catholic joke as well as anybody)

[Wanderfound]

I came across a short article about Stephen Hawking warning that the God particle could destroy the universe.

Unfortunately, like a lot of top-flight physicists, Hawking is a very smart man who frequently says very stupid things to journalists.

Could the Higgs destroy the universe? Well, yes, in the same sense that snapping your fingers "could" destroy the universe. Ain't gonna happen.

It's just a throw away comment mentioning the LHC in the middle of an interview on another topic, but this might be of interest: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/03/brian-cox-scientists-climate-change

[Wanderfound]

Probably some ignorant journalists putting things out of context, just like here:

http://xkcd.com/799/

On a similar theme: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=1174

[K^2]

Whoever started that horrible public misconception that Higgs is the cause of mass deserves public lashing. It has nothing to do with mass of most things. Certainly, not even close to main contribution in matter. By far, most of the mass is generated dynamically and would be the same without Higgs.

[-Velocity-]

Hawking is hardly the first person to point this possibility out. Physicists have long known that it's possible that our current vacuum state could be metastable (a long-lived "false vacuum"). The scary thing is that the Higgs mass appears to be in the proper range, or close to it, to indicate we are living in a false vacuum. The good news is that predicting doomsday may be a little premature, as the laws of physics beyond the Standard Model that we are still ignorant of will likely play a big role in determining the ultimate stability of the universe.

[Aningaaq]

Unfortunately, like a lot of top-flight physicists, Hawking is a very smart man who frequently says very stupid things to journalists.

Could the Higgs destroy the universe? Well, yes, in the same sense that snapping your fingers "could" destroy the universe. Ain't gonna happen.

It's just a throw away comment mentioning the LHC in the middle of an interview on another topic, but this might be of interest: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/03/brian-cox-scientists-climate-change

Stupid? Hmm, depends. He has a new book coming out. He needed the publicity and now he has it.

[magnemoe]

Hawking is hardly the first person to point this possibility out. Physicists have long known that it's possible that our current vacuum state could be metastable (a long-lived "false vacuum"). The scary thing is that the Higgs mass appears to be in the proper range, or close to it, to indicate we are living in a false vacuum. The good news is that predicting doomsday may be a little premature, as the laws of physics beyond the Standard Model that we are still ignorant of will likely play a big role in determining the ultimate stability of the universe.

Yes, however if that event could be triggered by an high energy particle it would have happened long time ago.

Some of the cosmic radiation carry insane energy compared with our particle accelerators.

Introducing the Oh-My-God particle

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh-My-God_particle

It's rare but not unique, plenty of them has hit stuff like neuron stars over the billion of years, in short I don't see anything we can do in a particle accelerator who has not happened more energetic naturally, guess plenty of black holes has collided too, And yes condition just after the big bang is another level.

The concern about fusion in the atmosphere after setting off an nuclear bomb makes more sense, yes thinking about it it should do nothing more than perhaps boost the explosion an faction even in an pure tritium atmosphere as the explosion would generate an vacuum

[lajoswinkler]

Yeah, I know how the stupid name supposedly started, but the media is fault for spreading of that sickness.