Higgs boson scientists win Nobel prize in physics

[Laurie61]

I guess this was not really a surprise but well done Petter Higgs and Francois Englert     

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24436781

[emadmoussa]

They deserve it.

The surprising bit were the predictions of candidates...enough to say Vladimir Putin was on the list, this tells you enough of the rubbish predictions!!!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Well deserved!

[Laurie61]

OOPS, cant spell Peter  have to admit to a special interest in this as my sister-in-law works on the ATLAS detector, amazing achievement.     

[George Jones]

Well deserved!

I agree!

The possibility of a Nobel for the Higgs boson has, however, generated some controversy. Particle physicist Frank Close have written about this on the web,

http://blog.oup.com/2012/07/frank-close-new-boson-particle-higgs-find/,

and in more detail in his fascinating book The Infinity puzzle.

Close called for today's two winners, and also for Tom Kibble.

[Macavity]

I think they got it right! A little bit "much ado about nothing" in the popular press?

Lets face it, not everyone can win a Nobel Prize - Particularly with several possibles!

My erstwhile group leader (anecdotally!) rather "screwed the opposition" out of it...

But (See e.g. 1984) it was still jointly awarded. And Honour was largely satisfied. 

I still rejoice when fellow "hardware guys" get the recognition. As is not unknown! 

[baggywrinkle]

During the nuclear physics part of my navy reactor course I stupidly invented a new particle in an exam question. It was called the supositron, it did not win me a Nobel Prize only a dressing down from the Nuc School Commander....

Well done on their Nobel Prize 50 years in the making.

[Guest]

Peter Higgs was my Theoretical Physics lecturer in Edinburgh Uni in the early 80s.  He is a lovely guy and I am so pleased for him.

[baggywrinkle]

Seems he has wisely done a runner to avoid the ferral press. /\ Must be a good feeling to have had a Nobel Laureate as a teacher.

[Ouroboros]

I agree!

The possibility of a Nobel for the Higgs boson has, however, generated some controversy. Particle physicist Frank Close have written about this on the web,

http://blog.oup.com/2012/07/frank-close-new-boson-particle-higgs-find/,

and in more detail in his fascinating book The Infinity puzzle.

Close called for today's two winners, and also for Tom Kibble.

Well deserved indeed. I'm very pleased not least because Peter Higgs health is such that there were concerns that the Nobel prize might leave it too late.

I went to see a lecture by Frank Close a year or more back on this topic. It was very interesting. He explored in some detail the contributions of six (I think) theoretical physicists in this field and explained how the Nobel prize committee were perhaps in a dilemma because they can't award the prize to more than three people. It's interesting that they have decided to award the prize to just two of them.

Regarding Kibble, according to the BBC website Kibble has said he was "glad" the Nobel prize had gone to the work of Higgs and Englert. "My two collaborators, Gerald Guralnik and Carl Hagen, and I contributed to that discovery, but our paper was unquestionably the last of the three to be published."

[JB80]

Well at least it's more encouraging than the prize for agriculture.

Lets face it Putin is up for the peace prize too, I think I'd be handing it back and wait for a more prestigious award/nothing.

[Ouroboros]

I see a Brit has won the Nobel prize for chemistry today too. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24458534

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

During the nuclear physics part of my navy reactor course I stupidly invented a new particle in an exam question. It was called the supositron, it did not win me a Nobel Prize only a dressing down from the Nuc School Commander....

Well done on their Nobel Prize 50 years in the making.

You could always go for an Ig Nobel prize 

[Macavity]

I see a Brit has won the Nobel prize for chemistry today too. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24458534

Chemistry?   "We'll have no trouble here..." (League of Gentlemen)

But there is a lot of "good stuff" that doesn't make the headlines?

[Ouroboros]

Well, it's only smelly physics after all! Actually, this was in computer modelling I believe. So barely chemistry at all. ;-)

[Laurie61]

Nothing to do with the Nobel but when the Atlas detector was finished they issued a silver coin to mark the event. Knowing I was interested in the experiment my Sister in law bought one back for my birthday. 

[Tobiasen]

No surprise, and well deserved. 

[Pig]

Excellent result

[Guest]

Must be a good feeling to have had a Nobel Laureate as a teacher.

...it just makes me realise how little I really understood