Happy Higgs Boson Day!

Energy & Sustainability Science
Happy Higgs Boson Day!

A tachyon walks into a bar. The bartender says “Hey buddy, not so fast.”

Happy 4th of July, everybody!  I celebrated today along with the rest of America: by hanging out with friends, throwing some meat on the grill, and discussing the breaking (and long-awaited) discovery of a Higgs Boson particle.

The discovery is touted as “five sigma,” meaning that at five standard deviations from the norm, the chances of it being a statistical fluke are miniscule.  The probability of my friends being total nerds, however, is beyond statistical doubt.

For a great cartoon explanation of the Higgs particle, check out this video by PHD Comics:

YouTube player

And just for fun, Vi Hart’s “Sonnet on a Higgs-like Particle”:

YouTube player

12 thoughts on “Happy Higgs Boson Day!

  1. Snelg says:

    Alternate version of that joke:

    The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve faster-than-light particles in here.”
    A tachyon walks into a bar.

  2. Jack Van Gossen says:

    A Higgs-Boson particle walks into a church, the priest says “We don’t allow Higgs-Boson particles in here!” The Higgs-Boson particle replies, “but without me, how can you have mass?”

  3. Gareth Branwyn says:

    Did you hear about the Higgs boson discovery?
    Yeah, it’s massive.
    (Made that one up myself)

    1. Gareth Branwyn says:

      Finding that Higgs-like particle was a pain in the mass.

  4. Best Discussion of Higgs Boson Discovery | Follow Me Here… says:

    […] God (o.canada.com) The Higgs Boson (boston.com) Higgs Boson, Explained by Cartoons (neatorama.com) Happy Higgs Boson Day! (makezine.com) What Does the Discovery of Higgs Boson Mean? [VIDEO] (mashable.com) Can you explain […]

  5. Jonathan says:

    The PhD video posted here isn’t the official version. I’ve attached the correct version below
    http://vimeo.com/41038445

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