BarkellWH -> Vindication...50 Years Later (Oct. 9 2013 14:57:57)
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Having escaped the political deadlock in Washington over the government shutdown and looming debt limit increase battle, I am enjoying the delightful weather and landscape of Oro Valley, just north of Tucson, Arizona. I always look forward to the announcement of the Nobel Prize winners in October, and this year, while basking in the sunny clime of southern Arizona, has been no exception. I am particularly pleased to see that the Nobel Prize for Physics was awarded to the UK's Peter Higgs (University of Edinburgh) and the Belgian Francois Englert for their theory, reached independently, postulating the existence of the subatomic particle that came to be known as the Higgs-Boson, the so-called "God Particle," that explains how fundamental building blocks of the universe come together and form mass. Higgs formulated the theory 50 years ago, but it was proven just last year at the CERN facility in Switzerland. After 50 years, it is good to see a theoretical physicist's theory finally vindicated. It demonstrates the value of pure research. Some have said that the scientists at the CERN facility should be given equal recognition for demonstrating the proof of the theory, but that misses the point. What really counts is the mind that conceived of the theory, not the scientists and technicions who demonstrated its proof, important as that may be. May we always give creative minds the opportunity and the means to advance in their fields. Cheers, Bill
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