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"Perfect" Electron Roundness Bruises Supersymmetry

Posted by samzenpus on from the look-at-how-round-it-is-man dept.

astroengine writes "New measurements of the electron have confirmed, to the smallest precision attainable, that it has a perfect roundness. This may sounds nice for the little electron, but to one of the big physics theories beyond the standard model, it's very bad news. 'We know the Standard Model does not encompass everything,' said physicist David DeMille, of Yale University and the ACME collaboration, in a press release. 'Like our LHC colleagues, we're trying to see something in the lab that's different from what the Standard Model predicts.' Should supersymmetrical particles exist, they should have a measurable effect on the electron's dipole moment. But as ACME's precise measurements show, the electron still has zero dipole moment (as predicted by the standard model) and is likely very close to being perfectly round. Unfortunately for the theory of supersymmetry, this is yet another blow."

9 of 150 comments (clear)

  1. ACME by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

    "ACME collaboration"?

    Then just bang the electron on the head with an ACME anvil, and it will grow lumps.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  2. Re:Invisible unicorns in a garage by Tablizer · · Score: 1, Funny

    Because since protons prefer round, smooth booties, they won't date neutrons, which then fly off into space to shop. Didn't you learn anything in science class?

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  3. It's a heisenberg moment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you measure it, an electron is perfectly round. The rest of the time it's kind of oval.

  4. Perfectly spherical? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Science is going to be really screwed when they discover frictionless planes also exist.

    1. Re:Perfectly spherical? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      On the contrary, they'll all stand up and say this is what they've trained for all those years of assuming spherical cows and frictionless surfaces.

    2. Re:Perfectly spherical? by kimvette · · Score: 3, Funny

      On the contrary, they'll all stand up and say this is what they've trained for all those years of assuming spherical cows and frictionless surfaces.

      If the surface is frictionless I doubt very much that they will be doing any standing.

      --
      The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
  5. Re:Can anyone explain what supersymmetry is? by ColdWetDog · · Score: 3, Funny

    Must have some rough edges.

    --
    Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
  6. Re:Bad news for string theory by Sponge+Bath · · Score: 3, Funny

    A whole lot of PhD dissertations, physics publications, and academic careers are on the line over this.

    All those (dipole) moments will be lost in time... like tears in rain...

  7. Re:Invisible unicorns in a garage by mbkennel · · Score: 3, Funny


    Supersymmetry solves an enormous number of problems in particle physics, except for experimental facts.