The Infinity Puzzle: The personalities, politics, and extraordinary science behind the Higgs boson

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Frank Close (Professor of Theoretical Physics, Oxford University, and Fellow in Physics, Exeter College, Oxford)

The Infinity Puzzle

The personalities, politics, and extraordinary science behind the Higgs boson

Frank Close (Professor of Theoretical Physics, Oxford University, and Fellow in Physics, Exeter College, Oxford)

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English

Oxford University Press
09 April 2013

Mathematics & Sciences; Popular science; Physics

We are living in a Golden Age of Physics. Forty or so years ago, three brilliant, yet little-known scientists - an American, a Dutchman, and an Englishman - made breakthroughs which later inspired the construction of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Geneva: a 27 kilometre-long machine that cost ten billion dollars, took twenty years to build, and finally discovered a particle consistent with the Higgs boson. The Infinity Puzzle is the inside story of those forty years of research, breakthrough, and endeavour. Peter Higgs, Gerard 't Hooft and James Bjorken were the three scientists whose work is explored here, played out across the decades against a backdrop of high politics, low behaviour, and billion dollar budgets. Written by Frank Close, the eminent physicist and award-winning writer, The Infinity Puzzle also draws upon the author's close friendships with those involved. In July 2012, in the days leading up to the momentous announcement that the Higgs boson had indeed been discovered, Frank Close and Peter Higgs were together at a conference in Sicily. In this paperback edition, Close includes a substantial epilogue reflecting on the announcement, its implications, and the impact on Peter Higgs and others.

By: Frank Close (Professor of Theoretical Physics Oxford University and Fellow in Physics Exeter College Oxford)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 233mm, Width: 155mm, Spine: 24mm
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9780199673308
ISBN 10: 0199673306
Pages: 432
Publication Date: 09 April 2013
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

"Prologue: Amsterdam 1971 GENESIS 1: The Point of Infinity 2: Shelter Island and QED 3: Feynman, Schwinger...and Tomonaga (and Dyson) Intermission 1950 4: Abdus Salam - A Strong Beginning 5: Yang-Mills...and Shaw 6: The Identity of John Ward 7: The Marriage of Weak and Electromagnetic Forces - to 1964 Intermission 1960 8: Broken Symmetries 9: ""The Boson That Has Been Named After Me"", aka the Higgs Boson Intermission mid 1960s 10: 1967 - from Kibble to Salam and Weinberg 11: ""And Now I Introduce Mr 't Hooft"" Intermission early 1970s REVELATION 12: BJ and the Cosmic Quarks 13: A Comedy of Errors Intermission 1975 14: Heavy Light 15: ""Warmly Admired Richly Deserved"" 16: The Big Machine Intermission the end of the 20th century 17: To Infinity and Beyond Postscript Epilogue: Bonfire of the Infinities Bibliography Acronyms for Notes Notes Index"

Reviews for The Infinity Puzzle: The personalities, politics, and extraordinary science behind the Higgs boson

`this is an insider's view of a story that changed our understanding of the nature of reality.' Guardian `Review from previous edition fascinating book' Nature `thoroughly researched and well-crafted narrative' New Scientist `masterpiece...I never normally give 5 stars but for this I make an exception.' John Gribbin, BBC Focus `If [the Higgs Boson] does turn up, some people in Stockholm will likely be among the book's most avid readers ... Close is especially diligent in investigating the priority of ideas and in crediting researchers who may have been left behind, either by the Nobel committee or by popular imagination ... The result is a much more nuanced picture of history.' Physics World