Lecture Date: Tuesday, December 11, 2007. For over 40 years, physicists have been trying to track down a hypothetical particle called the Higgs boson. This particle could explain how known elementary particles like the electron can have mass, and also why one of the basic forces, the weak interaction, is in fact so incredibly weak. However, the Higgs boson has escaped detection so far, even at the most powerful particle accelerators. The next big chance to "bag" this particle will come when the Large Hadron Collider turns on next year. Will the Higgs boson finally be found? Or will an unexpected explanation for these mysteries be revealed? Lecturer: Lance Dixon, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.
