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New 'Mystery Meson' Sub-Atomic Particle Discovered
securitas writes "The BBC reports that scientists in Japan have discovered a new sub-atomic particle that defies current theories of matter and energy. The 'mystery meson' X(3872) was revealed while studying beauty quarks at the KEK High Energy Accelerator Research Organization Tsukuba meson factory. 'It weighs about the same as a single atom of helium and exists for only about one billionth of a trillionth of a second before it decays into other longer-lived, more familiar particles.' Scientists say the lifespan 'is nearly an eternity for a sub-atomic particle this heavy' and may require a change in current theory. Possible explanations for this include the particle being comprised of two quarks and two antiquarks, instead of the usual one-one pairing. More explanation and illustrations at KEK."
I hate it when I come in for lunch and the lab has "Mystery Mesons".
/. If the government wants us to respect the law, it should set a better example.
...was revealed while studying beauty quarks...
I knew it wasn't just in the eye of the beholder.
She was always my favorite character in the "SubAtomic Defenders" series. But like a lot of her fans, I resent the description of her as "heavy". Perhaps zaftig would be a more accurate phrase. All I know is she filled out her uniform in a pleasing way.
...Mr. Arthur Dent, please report to the particle physics lab and make confused faces.
That is all.
Hammer of Truth
gotta love how they study something by smashing it into peices. I always pictured using the same technique to study how a radio works by shooting bullets into it, and then observing the peices as they fly out of the radio :-)
I Am My Own Worst Enemy
If this is "Overthrow the Standard Model"-class Big News, I would like to see it duplicated first. Otherwise it's just an invisible purple dragon floating in my garage...
(/me straps in for the impending moderation roller coaster)
Slashdot's first reaction to VMware
...ever get the feeling that partical physicists are just sharing one big self-delusion?
"Hey Bob, did you hear? Joe discovered a new kind of...uh...Meson!"
"A...Meson? Oh...yeah, Meson, of course. I know what that is."
"Yeah, check out this graph, see that spike right there for 1 billionth-trillionth of a second?"
"Uh...yeah! Yeah, I see it! Right there!"
"No, over there."
"Right! Right over there! Wow, that's great. Well, I'm off to go discover a...uh...new kind of...Foofara?"
"Wow....Foofara huh? Wow...that's awesome...Good Luck!"
No, but we can tell you to shut up, as even you admit that you haven't the slightest clue what you're talking about.
I had but a simple dream, to destroy all humans.
A college Philosophy professor of mine tells a story about high energy physics and the practitioners thereof. He was researching a book on the philosophy of science and was interviewing one of the researchers at Fermilab (I think).
After discussing some of the esoterica of the field, my professor says "Okay. Off the record, do you *actually* believe that some of these particles exist outside of mathematical equations?"
Scientist looks around and replies "Not really. But this stuff is a lot of fun!"
"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly." A. Carlson
Hurrah! down with the standard model!
Warp speed and time travel might yet be possible!
If you were suggesting a vast, global conspiracy of physicists has organized itself to fraudulently claim the existance of a particle which is of interest mostly only to them- then I think you need to adjust your tinfoil hat.
Yeah, that's simply ridiculous. That would be like positing a world-wide organization of people who proclaimed, and attempted to convince their followers to believe in, the existence of a ghost in the sky who created and controls the entire universe.
I guess you'd think that organization secured for its leaders influence over politics and broadcasting and political leaders. You might even think that this organization has its own country, and a leader who claims infallible knowledge of morality.
Clearly, if you believe such a conspiracy exists, you need to adjust your tin-foil hat.
Opinions on the Twiddler2 hand-held keyboard?
No, I'm a frayed knot.
"History doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme." Mark Twain
Next on Entertainment Tonight: overnight particle physics sensation D Meson X(4158) is threatening legal action against the popular tabloid, "Physics Review" for what it claims is "misleading representation" of its relationship with D Meson X(1924), which it has recently been spotted interacting strongly with at the posh KEK Tsukuba Positron-Electron Supercollider in Japan. X(4158)'s lawyers also stated that further intrusions into the popular particle's privacy by the subatomic paparazzi would not be tolerated, and that a particle's spin-orientation is none of your business.
there is truth to the conspiracy that we are all controlled by the invisible force of the 'free mesons'.