Comments on: Bump Hunting (Part 1) http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/ Random samplings from a universe of ideas Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:05:47 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Bump Hunting (Part 3??) | Cosmic Variance http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-217425 Bump Hunting (Part 3??) | Cosmic Variance Fri, 09 Mar 2007 16:48:06 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-217425 [...] I guess I never would have expected that the story of our little bump in the mass spectrum in our search for the Higgs could have taken on such a life of its own. After my initial presentation in Aspen in January, within our tightly-knit field of experimental particle physics there was certainly a wave of interest, which crested and then subsided in February. But by then, after my accounts here in CV, the mainstream media wheels began to turn and we have had coverage last week in New Scientist and now a sort of unattributed blurb in this week’s Economist. [...] [...] I guess I never would have expected that the story of our little bump in the mass spectrum in our search for the Higgs could have taken on such a life of its own. After my initial presentation in Aspen in January, within our tightly-knit field of experimental particle physics there was certainly a wave of interest, which crested and then subsided in February. But by then, after my accounts here in CV, the mainstream media wheels began to turn and we have had coverage last week in New Scientist and now a sort of unattributed blurb in this week’s Economist. [...]

]]> By: Eduardo Valencia http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-216297 Eduardo Valencia Thu, 08 Mar 2007 18:55:12 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-216297 John, Congratulations on your findings. The Higgs boson is to be found at exactly 246.0814 GeV details on paper sent to Physica Scripta best regards Eduardo John,
Congratulations on your findings.
The Higgs boson is to be found at exactly 246.0814 GeV
details on paper sent to Physica Scripta
best regards
Eduardo

]]> By: mike http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-212564 mike Sun, 04 Mar 2007 19:19:38 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-212564 Tenterhooks? Why not ion storage rings? Tenterhooks? Why not ion storage rings?

]]> By: Goodwill Jester http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-212502 Goodwill Jester Sun, 04 Mar 2007 17:09:56 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-212502 I've recently started buying New Scientist (more widely available in my neck of the woods than Scientific American) and I was interested to read this blog. I am from a completely unscientific background and paid no attention whatsoever in Physics when I was at school, so I was expecting this to be all Greek to me. All I can say now is your ability to explain this very arcane subject evidently matches your abilities as a physicist. Thanks very much indeed. Interesting and informative. I will read the second instalment when my brain has recovered. I’ve recently started buying New Scientist (more widely available in my neck of the woods than Scientific American) and I was interested to read this blog. I am from a completely unscientific background and paid no attention whatsoever in Physics when I was at school, so I was expecting this to be all Greek to me. All I can say now is your ability to explain this very arcane subject evidently matches your abilities as a physicist. Thanks very much indeed. Interesting and informative. I will read the second instalment when my brain has recovered.

]]> By: Another Higgs bump? Not so fast… | Cosmic Variance http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-211606 Another Higgs bump? Not so fast… | Cosmic Variance Fri, 02 Mar 2007 20:17:20 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-211606 [...] The New Scientist has picked up my story of the Bump Hunt in their issue this week. The author, Anil Anathaswamy, interviewed me for an hour a couple weeks ago on the phone, wrote a draft, let me look it over for fact-checking. By and large he got the story correct, I’d say. It’s an odd feeling, though, I have to say, to se it out there like that. [...] [...] The New Scientist has picked up my story of the Bump Hunt in their issue this week. The author, Anil Anathaswamy, interviewed me for an hour a couple weeks ago on the phone, wrote a draft, let me look it over for fact-checking. By and large he got the story correct, I’d say. It’s an odd feeling, though, I have to say, to se it out there like that. [...]

]]> By: appletree » Blog Archive » Carnivalia http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-211120 appletree » Blog Archive » Carnivalia Fri, 02 Mar 2007 02:42:05 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-211120 [...] The seventh installment of Philosophia Naturalis, the quadriweekly carnival of physics and technology, is up on Geek Counterpoint; the highlight is John Conway’s two-part series about the search for the Higgs boson. The next carnival will be posted on March 29th; the carnival webpage is here. Note that although the host is not yet publicly posted on the carnival webpage, the next available hosting opportunity is on 5/24. [...] [...] The seventh installment of Philosophia Naturalis, the quadriweekly carnival of physics and technology, is up on Geek Counterpoint; the highlight is John Conway’s two-part series about the search for the Higgs boson. The next carnival will be posted on March 29th; the carnival webpage is here. Note that although the host is not yet publicly posted on the carnival webpage, the next available hosting opportunity is on 5/24. [...]

]]> By: Carnivalia « Abstract Nonsense http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-211119 Carnivalia « Abstract Nonsense Fri, 02 Mar 2007 02:40:42 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-211119 [...] Carnivalia The seventh installment of Philosophia Naturalis, the quadriweekly carnival of physics and technology, is up on Geek Counterpoint; the highlight is John Conway’s two-part series about the search for the Higgs boson. The next carnival will be posted on March 29th; the carnival webpage is here. Note that although the host is not yet publicly posted on the carnival webpage, the next available hosting opportunity is on 5/24. [...] [...] Carnivalia The seventh installment of Philosophia Naturalis, the quadriweekly carnival of physics and technology, is up on Geek Counterpoint; the highlight is John Conway’s two-part series about the search for the Higgs boson. The next carnival will be posted on March 29th; the carnival webpage is here. Note that although the host is not yet publicly posted on the carnival webpage, the next available hosting opportunity is on 5/24. [...]

]]> By: david rickel http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-187549 david rickel Tue, 30 Jan 2007 20:55:18 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-187549 Completely beside the point (which should be Great Post!), but are you sure about the meaning of "Aleph"? There's a monster with 100 eyes in Greek mythology called Argos (and I seem to remember a detector named after it), but it looks as if Aleph might have more to do with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Completely beside the point (which should be Great Post!), but are you sure about the meaning of “Aleph”? There’s a monster with 100 eyes in Greek mythology called Argos (and I seem to remember a detector named after it), but it looks as if Aleph might have more to do with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

]]> By: Hunting » Blog Archives » ICP - Chicken Hunting http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-187450 Hunting » Blog Archives » ICP - Chicken Hunting Tue, 30 Jan 2007 16:00:50 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-187450 [...] I ve been looking for the Higgs boson for almost 20 years. So there I was, on a Saturday morning in December, at CERN as it so happened, when I saw the graph we d been working towards all year. At first I thought it was some mistake … – More – [...] [...] I ve been looking for the Higgs boson for almost 20 years. So there I was, on a Saturday morning in December, at CERN as it so happened, when I saw the graph we d been working towards all year. At first I thought it was some mistake … – More – [...]

]]> By: Dark Matter » Rumors of Higgs Boson! http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-187403 Dark Matter » Rumors of Higgs Boson! Tue, 30 Jan 2007 14:29:43 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-187403 [...] The rumors of Higgs boson have been rampant since last week, John’s bump hunting and Tommaso’s notes at 2.1 Sigma excess at 140 to 160 Gev. [...] [...] The rumors of Higgs boson have been rampant since last week, John’s bump hunting and Tommaso’s notes at 2.1 Sigma excess at 140 to 160 Gev. [...]

]]> By: mis 3 quarks » Breves: 30/01/07 http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-187195 mis 3 quarks » Breves: 30/01/07 Tue, 30 Jan 2007 08:22:59 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-187195 [...] Tras la pista del bosón de Higgs (en inglés) La primera parte de lo que puede ser el descubrimiento más esperado de la física de partículas. La segunda parte aquí. [...] [...] Tras la pista del bosón de Higgs (en inglés) La primera parte de lo que puede ser el descubrimiento más esperado de la física de partículas. La segunda parte aquí. [...]

]]> By: gr.yet.anotherblog.net » Blog Archive » Παρά 2%. http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-186493 gr.yet.anotherblog.net » Blog Archive » Παρά 2%. Mon, 29 Jan 2007 08:48:28 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-186493 [...] Ο πανικός που επικράτησε στην μικρή ομάδα που πρωτοείδε το δευτερογενές μέγιστο, αλλά και σε όλα τα επίπεδα της ιεραρχίας στο CDF, καθώς το αποτέλεσμα φαινόταν όλο και περισσότερο να μην είναι εσφαλμένο, περιγράφεται στο πάρα πολύ καλογραμμένο ποστ ενός από τους βασικούς συντελεστές, στο cosmic variance (the bump hunting part I, part II). [...] [...] Ο πανικός που επικράτησε στην μικρή ομάδα που πρωτοείδε το δευτερογενές μέγιστο, αλλά και σε όλα τα επίπεδα της ιεραρχίας στο CDF, καθώς το αποτέλεσμα φαινόταν όλο και περισσότερο να μην είναι εσφαλμένο, περιγράφεται στο πάρα πολύ καλογραμμένο ποστ ενός από τους βασικούς συντελεστές, στο cosmic variance (the bump hunting part I, part II). [...]

]]> By: Let the Sun Shine In | Cosmic Variance http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-186428 Let the Sun Shine In | Cosmic Variance Mon, 29 Jan 2007 06:43:05 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-186428 [...] How cool is that!??!! (Ok, I admit, it’s probably not as cool as the Higgs, but it’s a hell of a lot easier to see!). I was pretty old by the time I figured this out. The first time I noticed it was during graduate school in the courtyard of a building at the Institute for Advanced Study, during a partial eclipse of the Sun. The moon was blocking about 2/3 of the Sun, making a tidy little cresent. All the tree-dappled sunlight on the ground turned into cresents as well. The effect was spectacular, if not a little odd. I wound up watching the rest of the eclipse on the ground, rather than through my carefuly prepared piece of mylar (i.e., the wrapper off a Poptart). Mmmmmmmm….Poptarts! [...] [...] How cool is that!??!! (Ok, I admit, it’s probably not as cool as the Higgs, but it’s a hell of a lot easier to see!). I was pretty old by the time I figured this out. The first time I noticed it was during graduate school in the courtyard of a building at the Institute for Advanced Study, during a partial eclipse of the Sun. The moon was blocking about 2/3 of the Sun, making a tidy little cresent. All the tree-dappled sunlight on the ground turned into cresents as well. The effect was spectacular, if not a little odd. I wound up watching the rest of the eclipse on the ground, rather than through my carefuly prepared piece of mylar (i.e., the wrapper off a Poptart). Mmmmmmmm….Poptarts! [...]

]]> By: The Higgs boson and why scientists are excited about it! « My agnostic views about reason, God and life http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-186381 The Higgs boson and why scientists are excited about it! « My agnostic views about reason, God and life Mon, 29 Jan 2007 03:53:41 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-186381 [...] [...] [...] [...]

]]> By: The Higgs boson and why scientists are excited about it! | an agnostic’s views about reason, God and life http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-186379 The Higgs boson and why scientists are excited about it! | an agnostic’s views about reason, God and life Mon, 29 Jan 2007 03:52:53 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-186379 [...] [...] [...] [...]

]]> By: Borborigmi di un fisico renitente » Qualcuno ha visto il bosone di Higgs? http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-186210 Borborigmi di un fisico renitente » Qualcuno ha visto il bosone di Higgs? Sun, 28 Jan 2007 20:36:26 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-186210 [...] Update: l’autore di questo grafico si è da poco lanciato nel magico mondo dei blog scientifici, unendos alla ciurma di Cosmic Variance. Prime pubblicazioni? I retroscena di come sia apparso il “picco” a 160 GeV nel corso dell’analisi, e delle reazioni immediate. Lettura consigliata anzichenò (in inglese, of course). [...] [...] Update: l’autore di questo grafico si è da poco lanciato nel magico mondo dei blog scientifici, unendos alla ciurma di Cosmic Variance. Prime pubblicazioni? I retroscena di come sia apparso il “picco” a 160 GeV nel corso dell’analisi, e delle reazioni immediate. Lettura consigliata anzichenò (in inglese, of course). [...]

]]> By: Arun Thalapillil http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-185729 Arun Thalapillil Sat, 27 Jan 2007 23:12:00 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-185729 Thanks for a nice post. Hope to see more posts from you and what the high energy experiments community is upto. Thanks for a nice post. Hope to see more posts from you and what the high energy experiments community is upto.

]]> By: Hank http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-185589 Hank Sat, 27 Jan 2007 18:05:02 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-185589 This is not just a terrific article, it is a good read! This is not just a terrific article, it is a good read!

]]> By: Nordic Graceland » http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-185482 Nordic Graceland » Sat, 27 Jan 2007 14:24:59 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-185482 [...] I was just reading bump hunting at Cosmic Variance. A 2.5 sigma excess that could be the Higgs boson. While it’s not statistically significant enough to start to get excited… yet… it got me thinking: could this be the first major scientific discovery blogged in real time? [...] [...] I was just reading bump hunting at Cosmic Variance. A 2.5 sigma excess that could be the Higgs boson. While it’s not statistically significant enough to start to get excited… yet… it got me thinking: could this be the first major scientific discovery blogged in real time? [...]

]]> By: Amit Lath http://cosmicvariance.com/2007/01/26/bump-hunting-part-1/#comment-184992 Amit Lath Fri, 26 Jan 2007 20:10:33 +0000 http://cosmicvariance.com/?p=1100#comment-184992 Also, we should mention Rutgers student Zongru Wan (John Conway's student, now at Brookhaven) who also did a lot of the preliminary spadework on identifying taus. It should be pointed out that getting a relatively pure sample of tau-pair events is really really difficult (at hadron colliders). We must have spent close to a year banging our heads against the "jet fakes" (basically, the probability that a plain-vanilla quark or gluon jet will look like a tau). We will have to fight similar battles at the LHC (both John and I are on the CMS detector there). The tau may be our favorite lepton, but it isn't quite as friendly as a muon or electron. Also, we should mention Rutgers student Zongru Wan (John Conway’s student, now at Brookhaven) who also did a lot of the preliminary spadework on identifying taus.

It should be pointed out that getting a relatively pure sample of tau-pair events is really really difficult (at hadron colliders). We must have spent close to a year banging our heads against the “jet fakes” (basically, the probability that a plain-vanilla quark or gluon jet will look like a tau).

We will have to fight similar battles at the LHC (both John and I are on the CMS detector there). The tau may be our favorite lepton, but it isn’t quite as friendly as a muon or electron.

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