Physics

Scientists may have found 'fifth force of nature'

Scientists at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), believe they have identified a “fifth force of nature.”

“If true, it’s revolutionary,” said Jonathan Feng, professor of physics and astronomy, in a press release. “For decades, we’ve known of four fundamental forces: gravitation, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nuclear forces. If confirmed by further experiments, this discovery of a possible fifth force would completely change our understanding of the universe, with consequences for the unification of forces and dark matter.”

The physicists cite a “protophobic X boson” recently found by physicists at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. The mysterious particle, which interacts only with electrons and neutrons at a very limited range, dazzled scientists. “There’s no other boson that we’ve observed that has this same characteristic,” said Timothy Tait, professor of physics and astronomy at UCI. “Sometimes we also just call it the ‘X boson,’ where ‘X’ means unknown.”

Physics

Scientists struggle to stay grounded after possible gravitational wave signal

Not for the first time, the world of physics is abuzz with rumours that gravitational waves have been detected by scientists in the US.

Lawrence Krauss, a cosmologist at Arizona State university, tweeted that he had received independent confirmation of a rumour that has been in circulation for months, adding: “Gravitational waves may have been discovered!!”

The excitement centres on a longstanding experiment known as the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (Ligo) which uses detectors in Hanford, Washington, and Livingston, Louisiana to look for ripples in the fabric of spacetime.