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James Beacham: How we explore unanswered questions in physics
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James Beacham looks for answers to the most important open questions of physics using the biggest science experiment ever mounted, CERN's Large Hadron Collider. In this fun and accessible talk about how science happens, Beacham takes us on a journey through extra-spatial dimensions in search of undiscovered fundamental particles (and an explanation for the mysteries of gravity) and details the drive to keep exploring.
James Beacham - Experimental particle physicist
James Beacham is an experimental high-energy particle physicist working with the ATLAS collaboration at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. Full bio
James Beacham is an experimental high-energy particle physicist working with the ATLAS collaboration at CERN's Large Hadron Collider. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
There is something about physics
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that has been really bothering me
since I was a little kid.
since I was a little kid.
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And it's related to a question
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that scientists have been asking
for almost 100 years,
for almost 100 years,
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with no answer.
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How do the smallest things in nature,
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the particles of the quantum world,
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match up with the largest
things in nature --
things in nature --
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planets and stars and galaxies
held together by gravity?
held together by gravity?
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As a kid, I would puzzle
over questions just like this.
over questions just like this.
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I would fiddle around
with microscopes and electromagnets,
with microscopes and electromagnets,
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and I would read
about the forces of the small
about the forces of the small
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and about quantum mechanics
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and I would marvel at how well
that description matched up
that description matched up
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to our observation.
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Then I would look at the stars,
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and I would read about how well
we understand gravity,
we understand gravity,
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and I would think surely,
there must be some elegant way
there must be some elegant way
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that these two systems match up.
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But there's not.
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And the books would say,
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yeah, we understand a lot
about these two realms separately,
about these two realms separately,
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but when we try to link
them mathematically,
them mathematically,
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everything breaks.
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And for 100 years,
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none of our ideas as to how to solve
this basically physics disaster,
this basically physics disaster,
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has ever been supported by evidence.
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And to little old me --
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little, curious, skeptical James --
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this was a supremely unsatisfying answer.
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So, I'm still a skeptical little kid.
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Flash-forward now
to December of 2015,
to December of 2015,
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when I found myself smack in the middle
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of the physics world
being flipped on its head.
being flipped on its head.
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It all started when we at CERN
saw something intriguing in our data:
saw something intriguing in our data:
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a hint of a new particle,
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an inkling of a possibly extraordinary
answer to this question.
answer to this question.
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02:03
So I'm still a skeptical
little kid, I think,
little kid, I think,
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but I'm also now a particle hunter.
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I am a physicist at CERN's
Large Hadron Collider,
Large Hadron Collider,
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the largest science
experiment ever mounted.
experiment ever mounted.
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It's a 27-kilometer tunnel
on the border of France and Switzerland
on the border of France and Switzerland
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buried 100 meters underground.
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And in this tunnel,
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we use superconducting magnets
colder than outer space
colder than outer space
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to accelerate protons
to almost the speed of light
to almost the speed of light
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and slam them into each other
millions of times per second,
millions of times per second,
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collecting the debris of these collisions
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to search for new, undiscovered
fundamental particles.
fundamental particles.
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Its design and construction
took decades of work
took decades of work
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by thousands of physicists
from around the globe,
from around the globe,
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and in the summer of 2015,
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we had been working tirelessly
to switch on the LHC
to switch on the LHC
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at the highest energy that humans
have ever used in a collider experiment.
have ever used in a collider experiment.
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Now, higher energy is important
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because for particles,
there is an equivalence
there is an equivalence
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between energy and particle mass,
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and mass is just a number
put there by nature.
put there by nature.
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To discover new particles,
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we need to reach these bigger numbers.
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And to do that, we have to build
a bigger, higher energy collider,
a bigger, higher energy collider,
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and the biggest, highest
energy collider in the world
energy collider in the world
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is the Large Hadron Collider.
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And then, we collide protons
quadrillions of times,
quadrillions of times,
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and we collect this data very slowly,
over months and months.
over months and months.
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And then new particles might show up
in our data as bumps --
in our data as bumps --
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slight deviations from what you expect,
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little clusters of data points
that make a smooth line not so smooth.
that make a smooth line not so smooth.
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For example, this bump,
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after months of data-taking in 2012,
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led to the discovery
of the Higgs particle --
of the Higgs particle --
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the Higgs boson --
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and to a Nobel Prize
for the confirmation of its existence.
for the confirmation of its existence.
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This jump up in energy in 2015
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represented the best chance
that we as a species had ever had
that we as a species had ever had
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of discovering new particles --
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new answers to these
long-standing questions,
long-standing questions,
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because it was almost
twice as much energy as we used
twice as much energy as we used
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when we discovered the Higgs boson.
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Many of my colleagues had been working
their entire careers for this moment,
their entire careers for this moment,
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and frankly, to little curious me,
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this was the moment
I'd been waiting for my entire life.
I'd been waiting for my entire life.
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So 2015 was go time.
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So June 2015,
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the LHC is switched back on.
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My colleagues and I held our breath
and bit our fingernails,
and bit our fingernails,
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and then finally we saw
the first proton collisions
the first proton collisions
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at this highest energy ever.
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Applause, champagne, celebration.
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This was a milestone for science,
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and we had no idea what we would find
in this brand-new data.
in this brand-new data.
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And then a few weeks later,
we found a bump.
we found a bump.
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It wasn't a very big bump,
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but it was big enough to make
you raise your eyebrow.
you raise your eyebrow.
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But on a scale of one to 10
for eyebrow raises,
for eyebrow raises,
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if 10 indicates that you've
discovered a new particle,
discovered a new particle,
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this eyebrow raise is about a four.
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(Laughter)
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I spent hours, days, weeks
in secret meetings,
in secret meetings,
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arguing with my colleagues
over this little bump,
over this little bump,
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poking and prodding it with our most
ruthless experimental sticks
ruthless experimental sticks
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to see if it would withstand scrutiny.
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But even after months
of working feverishly --
of working feverishly --
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sleeping in our offices
and not going home,
and not going home,
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candy bars for dinner,
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coffee by the bucketful --
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physicists are machines
for turning coffee into diagrams --
for turning coffee into diagrams --
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(Laughter)
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This little bump would not go away.
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So after a few months,
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we presented our little bump to the world
with a very clear message:
with a very clear message:
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this little bump is interesting
but it's not definitive,
but it's not definitive,
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so let's keep an eye on it
as we take more data.
as we take more data.
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So we were trying to be
extremely cool about it.
extremely cool about it.
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And the world ran with it anyway.
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The news loved it.
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People said it reminded
them of the little bump
them of the little bump
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that was shown on the way
toward the Higgs boson discovery.
toward the Higgs boson discovery.
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Better than that,
my theorist colleagues --
my theorist colleagues --
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I love my theorist colleagues --
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my theorist colleagues wrote
500 papers about this little bump.
500 papers about this little bump.
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(Laughter)
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The world of particle physics
had been flipped on its head.
had been flipped on its head.
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But what was it about this particular bump
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that caused thousands of physicists
to collectively lose their cool?
to collectively lose their cool?
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This little bump was unique.
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This little bump indicated
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that we were seeing an unexpectedly
large number of collisions
large number of collisions
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whose debris consisted
of only two photons,
of only two photons,
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two particles of light.
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And that's rare.
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Particle collisions are not
like automobile collisions.
like automobile collisions.
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They have different rules.
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When two particles collide
at almost the speed of light,
at almost the speed of light,
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the quantum world takes over.
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And in the quantum world,
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these two particles
can briefly create a new particle
can briefly create a new particle
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that lives for a tiny fraction of a second
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before splitting into other particles
that hit our detector.
that hit our detector.
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Imagine a car collision
where the two cars vanish upon impact,
where the two cars vanish upon impact,
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a bicycle appears in their place --
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(Laughter)
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And then that bicycle explodes
into two skateboards,
into two skateboards,
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which hit our detector.
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(Laughter)
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Hopefully, not literally.
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They're very expensive.
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Events where only two photons
hit out detector are very rare.
hit out detector are very rare.
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And because of the special
quantum properties of photons,
quantum properties of photons,
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there's a very small number
of possible new particles --
of possible new particles --
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these mythical bicycles --
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that can give birth to only two photons.
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But one of these options is huge,
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and it has to do with
that long-standing question
that long-standing question
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that bothered me as a tiny little kid,
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about gravity.
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Gravity may seem super strong to you,
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but it's actually crazily weak
compared to the other forces of nature.
compared to the other forces of nature.
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I can briefly beat gravity when I jump,
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but I can't pick a proton out of my hand.
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The strength of gravity compared
to the other forces of nature?
to the other forces of nature?
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It's 10 to the minus 39.
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That's a decimal with 39 zeros after it.
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Worse than that,
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all of the other known forces of nature
are perfectly described
are perfectly described
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by this thing we call the Standard Model,
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which is our current best description
of nature at its smallest scales,
of nature at its smallest scales,
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and quite frankly,
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one of the most successful
achievements of humankind --
achievements of humankind --
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except for gravity, which is absent
from the Standard Model.
from the Standard Model.
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It's crazy.
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It's almost as though most
of gravity has gone missing.
of gravity has gone missing.
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We feel a little bit of it,
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but where's the rest of it?
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No one knows.
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But one theoretical explanation
proposes a wild solution.
proposes a wild solution.
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You and I --
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even you in the back --
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we live in three dimensions of space.
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I hope that's a
non-controversial statement.
non-controversial statement.
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(Laughter)
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All of the known particles also live
in three dimensions of space.
in three dimensions of space.
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In fact, a particle is just another name
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for an excitation
in a three-dimensional field;
in a three-dimensional field;
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a localized wobbling in space.
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More importantly, all the math
that we use to describe all this stuff
that we use to describe all this stuff
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assumes that there are only
three dimensions of space.
three dimensions of space.
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But math is math, and we can play
around with our math however we want.
around with our math however we want.
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And people have been playing around
with extra dimensions of space
with extra dimensions of space
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for a very long time,
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but it's always been an abstract
mathematical concept.
mathematical concept.
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I mean, just look around you --
you at the back, look around --
you at the back, look around --
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there's clearly only
three dimensions of space.
three dimensions of space.
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But what if that's not true?
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What if the missing gravity is leaking
into an extra-spatial dimension
into an extra-spatial dimension
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that's invisible to you and I?
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What if gravity is just as strong
as the other forces
as the other forces
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if you were to view it in this
extra-spatial dimension,
extra-spatial dimension,
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and what you and I experience
is a tiny slice of gravity
is a tiny slice of gravity
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make it seem very weak?
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If this were true,
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we would have to expand
our Standard Model of particles
our Standard Model of particles
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to include an extra particle,
a hyperdimensional particle of gravity,
a hyperdimensional particle of gravity,
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a special graviton that lives
in extra-spatial dimensions.
in extra-spatial dimensions.
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I see the looks on your faces.
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You should be asking me the question,
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"How in the world are we going to test
this crazy, science fiction idea,
this crazy, science fiction idea,
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stuck as we are in three dimensions?"
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The way we always do,
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by slamming together two protons --
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(Laughter)
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Hard enough that
the collision reverberates
the collision reverberates
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into any extra-spatial dimensions
that might be there,
that might be there,
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momentarily creating
this hyperdimensional graviton
this hyperdimensional graviton
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that then snaps back
into the three dimensions of the LHC
into the three dimensions of the LHC
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and spits off two photons,
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two particles of light.
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And this hypothetical,
extra-dimensional graviton
extra-dimensional graviton
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is one of the only possible,
hypothetical new particles
hypothetical new particles
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that has the special quantum properties
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that could give birth to our little,
two-photon bump.
two-photon bump.
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So, the possibility of explaining
the mysteries of gravity
the mysteries of gravity
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and of discovering extra
dimensions of space --
dimensions of space --
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perhaps now you get a sense
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as to why thousands of physics geeks
collectively lost their cool
collectively lost their cool
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over our little, two-photon bump.
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A discovery of this type
would rewrite the textbooks.
would rewrite the textbooks.
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But remember,
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the message from us experimentalists
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that actually were doing
this work at the time,
this work at the time,
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was very clear:
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we need more data.
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With more data,
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the little bump will either turn into
a nice, crisp Nobel Prize --
a nice, crisp Nobel Prize --
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(Laughter)
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Or the extra data will fill in
the space around the bump
the space around the bump
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and turn it into a nice, smooth line.
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So we took more data,
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and with five times the data,
several months later,
several months later,
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our little bump
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turned into a smooth line.
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The news reported on a "huge
disappointment," on "faded hopes,"
disappointment," on "faded hopes,"
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and on particle physicists "being sad."
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Given the tone of the coverage,
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you'd think that we had decided
to shut down the LHC and go home.
to shut down the LHC and go home.
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(Laughter)
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But that's not what we did.
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But why not?
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I mean, if I didn't discover
a particle -- and I didn't --
a particle -- and I didn't --
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if I didn't discover a particle,
why am I here talking to you?
why am I here talking to you?
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Why didn't I just hang my head in shame
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and go home?
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Particle physicists are explorers.
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And very much of what we do
is cartography.
is cartography.
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Let me put it this way: forget
about the LHC for a second.
about the LHC for a second.
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Imagine you are a space explorer
arriving at a distant planet,
arriving at a distant planet,
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searching for aliens.
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What is your first task?
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To immediately orbit the planet,
land, take a quick look around
land, take a quick look around
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for any big, obvious signs of life,
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and report back to home base.
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That's the stage we're at now.
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We took a first look at the LHC
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for any new, big,
obvious-to-spot particles,
obvious-to-spot particles,
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and we can report that there are none.
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1950
13:05
We saw a weird-looking alien bump
on a distant mountain,
on a distant mountain,
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but once we got closer,
we saw it was a rock.
we saw it was a rock.
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But then what do we do?
Do we just give up and fly away?
Do we just give up and fly away?
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Absolutely not;
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we would be terrible scientists if we did.
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No, we spend the next couple
of decades exploring,
of decades exploring,
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mapping out the territory,
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sifting through the sand
with a fine instrument,
with a fine instrument,
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peeking under every stone,
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drilling under the surface.
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New particles can either
show up immediately
show up immediately
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as big, obvious-to-spot bumps,
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or they can only reveal themselves
after years of data taking.
after years of data taking.
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Humanity has just begun its exploration
at the LHC at this big high energy,
at the LHC at this big high energy,
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and we have much searching to do.
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But what if, even after 10 or 20 years,
we still find no new particles?
we still find no new particles?
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We build a bigger machine.
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(Laughter)
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We search at higher energies.
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We search at higher energies.
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Planning is already underway
for a 100-kilometer tunnel
for a 100-kilometer tunnel
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that will collide particles
at 10 times the energy of the LHC.
at 10 times the energy of the LHC.
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We don't decide where
nature places new particles.
nature places new particles.
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We only decide to keep exploring.
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But what if, even after
a 100-kilometer tunnel
a 100-kilometer tunnel
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or a 500-kilometer tunnel
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or a 10,000-kilometer
collider floating in space
collider floating in space
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between the Earth and the Moon,
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we still find no new particles?
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Then perhaps we're doing
particle physics wrong.
particle physics wrong.
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(Laughter)
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Perhaps we need to rethink things.
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14:31
Maybe we need more resources,
technology, expertise
technology, expertise
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than what we currently have.
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14:36
We already use artificial intelligence
and machine learning techniques
and machine learning techniques
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in parts of the LHC,
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but imagine designing
a particle physics experiment
a particle physics experiment
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using such sophisticated algorithms
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14:45
that it could teach itself to discover
a hyperdimensional graviton.
a hyperdimensional graviton.
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But what if?
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What if the ultimate question:
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What if even artificial intelligence
can't help us answer our questions?
can't help us answer our questions?
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What if these open questions,
for centuries,
for centuries,
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14:56
are destined to be unanswered
for the foreseeable future?
for the foreseeable future?
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14:59
What if the stuff that's bothered me
since I was a little kid
since I was a little kid
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15:02
is destined to be unanswered
in my lifetime?
in my lifetime?
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15:06
Then that ...
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will be even more fascinating.
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15:12
We will be forced to think
in completely new ways.
in completely new ways.
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15:16
We'll have to go back to our assumptions,
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15:18
and determine if there was
a flaw somewhere.
a flaw somewhere.
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15:21
And we'll need to encourage more people
to join us in studying science
to join us in studying science
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since we need fresh eyes
on these century-old problems.
on these century-old problems.
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15:27
I don't have the answers,
and I'm still searching for them.
and I'm still searching for them.
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But someone -- maybe
she's in school right now,
she's in school right now,
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maybe she's not even born yet --
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could eventually guide us to see physics
in a completely new way,
in a completely new way,
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15:38
and to point out that perhaps
we're just asking the wrong questions.
we're just asking the wrong questions.
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Which would not be the end of physics,
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but a novel beginning.
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Thank you.
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(Applause)
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2541
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
James Beacham - Experimental particle physicistJames Beacham is an experimental high-energy particle physicist working with the ATLAS collaboration at CERN's Large Hadron Collider.
Why you should listen
As part of the ATLAS collaboration at CERN's Large Hadron Collider, one of the teams that discovered the Higgs boson in 2012, James Beacham is on the hunt for evidence of new particles -- dark photons, gravitons, dark matter and exotic Higgs bosons among them.
Previously, Beacham was part of a small team of researchers who, in 2009, searched for the Higgs boson in an unlikely place: data taken by the ALEPH experiment at CERN's Large Electron-Positron collider, nine years after it had stopped running. He has also worked with the APEX collaboration, a groundbreaking search for dark photons using existing particle physics facilities designed for very different purposes.
Beacham completed his PhD at New York University in 2014 and is currently a post-doctoral researcher with the ATLAS experiment group of the Ohio State University. He has been a guest on NPR's "Science Friday," participated in documentaries on the BBC and the Discovery Channel and talked particle physics with the New York Times and WIRED.
In addition to his ongoing research, Beacham is dedicated to making particle physics accessible to all. He has communicated science to the public with Symmetry Magazine, US/LHC, the Science Museum in London, the Institute of Physics, the World Science Fair and on the Web.
In 2015, Beacham organized Ex/Noise/CERN, a project colliding particle physics with experimental music to celebrate the LHC’s switch on to 13 trillion electron volts.
James Beacham | Speaker | TED.com