Category Archives: Particle Physics

Is there any such thing as “nothing”?

Posted on 12/05/2013 by Jon Butterworth

That’s a question I got on twitter just now after the Feynman gig from @elainepixie. I said (broken down into 140 character chunks): One definition of “nothing” is “vacuum”, by which physicists mean “lowest energy state”. That exists. But in … Continue reading →

Posted in Particle Physics, Philosophy, Physics, Science | Tagged | 1 Comment

Should we change the Higgs boson’s name?

Posted on 28/04/2013 by Jon Butterworth

I wrote this piece on the blog about Higgs boson naming, and was then asked to write something for g2. This appeared on the web here (not in the usual Life & Physics slot, hence this post so I can … Continue reading →

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Ask a grown-up: is there anything smaller than an atom?

Posted on 25/04/2013 by Jon Butterworth

And another non-“Life & Physics” article posted here so I can find it. One of the Guardian Weekend “Ask a grown-up” series. Most common response: “You did better than Sir Ranulph Fiennes”…

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What’s in a name? An H, an i, two g’s and an s

Posted on 22/04/2013 by Jon Butterworth

At the Guardian. See also Chapter 8.5 of Smashing Physics.

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