Now that a "Higgs-like particle" has been detected at Europe's Large Hadron Collider, is the hard part of the $10 billion quest for new physics finished? No. Way. The hard part — and, most physicists would say, the fun part — is just beginning. Caltech theoretical physicist Sean Carroll explains why in a new book, and on tonight's episode of our "Virtually Speaking Science" talk show.
You can tune in the program at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT / SLT) via the BlogTalkRadio website, or you can join the live audience in the Stella Nova Auditorium in the Second Life virtual world. If you miss the show, never fear: Like all our previous hourlong shows, tonight's program is being archived on BlogTalkRadio as well as on iTunes.
The physics of subatomic particles isn't exactly Carroll's comfort zone. He's more at home with big topics such as cosmic inflation, the accelerating universe, the arrow of time and extra dimensions. But that just means Carroll is able to fit the scientific view of the universe at its smallest scales into the bigger picture, writing in a style that's accessible to folks who wouldn't otherwise know their boson from a fermion in the ground.
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