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<center>For lessons on the related [[topic]] of '''''[[Physics]]''''', follow [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Category:Physics/TeaM '''''this link'''''].</center>
<center>For lessons on the related [[topic]] of '''''[[Physics]]''''', follow [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Category:Physics/TeaM '''''this link'''''].</center>
==Description==
==Description==
The '''Higgs boson''' or ''Higgs particle'' is a proposed elementary [[particle]] in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Model Standard Model] of particle physics. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higgs_mechanism Higgs mechanism] is the simplest of several proposed ways to [[explain]] how certain elementary particles have [[mass]]. According to this [[explanation]], these particles acquire mass by [[interacting]] with this [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higgs_field Higgs field], which has non-zero strength everywhere, even in otherwise empty [[space]]. A matching boson—the smallest possible [[excitation]] of this field—is predicted to exist by the same [[theory]], and as this would be detectable, it has been the target of a long search in particle physics. One of the primary goals of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider Large Hadron Collider] (LHC) at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CERN CERN] in Geneva, Switzerland—the most powerful [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Particle_accelerator particle accelerator] and one of the most complicated scientific instruments ever built—was to test the [[existence]] of the ''Higgs boson'' and measure its properties which would allow physicists to [[confirm]] this cornerstone of modern [[theory]].
The '''Higgs boson''' or ''Higgs particle'' is a proposed elementary [[particle]] in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Model Standard Model] of particle physics. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higgs_mechanism Higgs mechanism] is the simplest of several proposed ways to [[explain]] how certain elementary particles have [[mass]]. According to this [[explanation]], these particles acquire mass by [[interacting]] with this [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higgs_field Higgs field], which has non-zero strength everywhere, even in otherwise empty [[space]]. A matching boson—the smallest possible excitation of this field—is predicted to exist by the same [[theory]], and as this would be detectable, it has been the target of a long search in particle physics. One of the primary goals of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider Large Hadron Collider] (LHC) at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CERN CERN] in Geneva, Switzerland—the most powerful [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Particle_accelerator particle accelerator] and one of the most complicated scientific instruments ever built—was to test the [[existence]] of the ''Higgs boson'' and measure its properties which would allow physicists to [[confirm]] this cornerstone of modern [[theory]].
The Higgs boson is named for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Higgs Peter Higgs] who, along with two other teams, proposed the [[mechanism]] that suggested such a [[particle]] in 1964. In [[mainstream]] [[media]] it is very often referred to as "the God particle", after the title of Leon Lederman's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_God_Particle:_If_the_Universe_Is_the_Answer,_What_Is_the_Question%3F book on the topic] (1993). Although the proposed particle is both important and elusive, the epithet is strongly disliked by physicists, who regard it as misleading exaggeration.
The Higgs boson is named for [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Higgs Peter Higgs] who, along with two other teams, proposed the [[mechanism]] that suggested such a [[particle]] in 1964. In [[mainstream]] [[media]] it is very often referred to as "the God particle", after the title of Leon Lederman's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_God_Particle:_If_the_Universe_Is_the_Answer,_What_Is_the_Question%3F book on the topic] (1993). Although the proposed particle is both important and elusive, the epithet is strongly disliked by physicists, who regard it as misleading exaggeration.