The infinity puzzle : quantum field theory and the hunt for an orderly universe / Frank Close.

"Speculation is rife that by 2012 the elusive Higgs boson will be found at the Large Hadron Collider. If found, the Higgs boson would help explain why everything has mass. But there's more at stake-what we're really testing is our capacity to make the universe reasonable. Our best und...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Close, F. E.
Format: eBook
Language:English
Published: New York : Basic Books, ©2011.
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Online Access:Click for online access
Description
Summary:"Speculation is rife that by 2012 the elusive Higgs boson will be found at the Large Hadron Collider. If found, the Higgs boson would help explain why everything has mass. But there's more at stake-what we're really testing is our capacity to make the universe reasonable. Our best understanding of physics is predicated on something known as quantum field theory. Unfortunately, in its raw form, it doesn't make sense--its outputs are physically impossible infinite percentages when they should be something simpler, like the number 1. The kind of physics that the Higgs boson represents seeks to 'renormalize' field theory, forcing equations to provide answers that match what we see in the real world. The Infinity Puzzle is the story of a wild idea on the road to acceptance. Only Close can tell it"--Provided by publisher.
Physical Description:1 online resource (xii, 435 pages) : illustrations
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN:9780465028030
0465028039
1280598603
9781280598609
9786613628435
6613628433
0465021441
9780465021444
Language:English.
Source of Description, Etc. Note:Print version record.