Stephen Hawking: Research on the ‘God particle’ could cause space-time to collapse

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In the preface to a new book, Starmus, acclaimed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking writes that the so-called “God particle” could become unstable and cause a “catastrophic vacuum decay” that would lead to the collapse of time and space, The Sunday Times reports.

“The Higgs potential has the worrisome feature that it might become metastable at energies above 100bn gigaelectronvolts,” Hawking writes. “This could mean that the universe could undergo catastrophic vacuum decay, with a bubble of the true vacuum expanding at the speed of light.”

“This could happen at any time and we wouldn’t see it coming.”

As if we didn't have enough to worry about! Wars, Ebola, GMO,mouth blisters, killer storms and now a catastrophic vacuum decay....sheesh, I'm fracking at my wits end

Could someone please put in layman's terms exactly what the "God Particle" is and which God are we referencing here?
Or does this vacuum decay only apply to the Christian concept of GOD...you can see my confusion eh? Do Jew's get a "get out of jail free card"

a reply to: olaru12

No God is being referenced. God particle refers to the Higgs Boson, a particle with the ability to endow mass. Without it the Universe as we know it would not exist.

As for Hawking's predictions, I know the LHC is undergoing an upgrade that will increase it's capacity to 14-15 TeV, and that's the most powerful supercollider we've got. A FAR cry from the 100 BILLION GeV Hawking talks about.

Jeeze... I think I'd rather deal with ebola than a frickin' space-time collapse!!

originally posted by: SpongeBeard
a reply to: olaru12

No God is being referenced. God particle refers to the Higgs Boson, a particle with the ability to endow mass. Without it the Universe as we know it would not exist.

Then Higgs Boson particle; with our existence in the palm of his hand has taken over the reins of God? Sorry about the mixed metaphors.

a reply to: SpongeBeard

Precisely.

I remember a thread on ATS that mentioned the LHC and claimed it was a portal to bring Shiva into the world. I'm too lazy to search right now but I'm sure it's still on here.

We still are so divided on what we already know perhaps we shouldn't meddle with this? But then again it most certainly could answer questions they want to "officially" find out.

a reply to: olaru12
I always figured this is how the big bang occurred, some other failed monkey species in an alternative universe playing with particles and then poof.there universe ends and ours begins only to repeat its self infinity, have we considered that there may be a learning cap because once we get the tech to make true break throughs we destroy all life as we know it. The Greeks had it right remember the poor fellow sentenced by zues to push a rock up a hill for eternity only to have it roll back down...

Can we just get it over with already?

All these threats are getting worse than a little guy in a bar fight. "Hey man were you talking to my girl? You're lucky I don't bird flu, swine flu, killer asteroid, supervolcano, ebola, nuclear war, earthquake, alien invasion, terrorist attack, EMP, global warming, solar flare, Fukushima, space-time collapse you!"

a reply to: olaru12

Amazing. I am a complete novice with regard to this stuff and even I foresaw the potential for this to be a possible concern. I mean this thing was what is believed to have started it all and they think they can control it?

a reply to: Flint2011

There may be a limit to the edge of the universe but surly human hubris has no limit.

originally posted by: kaylaluv
Jeeze... I think I'd rather deal with ebola than a frickin' space-time collapse!!

Six of one, nil dozen of another.

a reply to: olaru12

Fabulous, so Stephen Hawking is now writing doom porn about how a tiny little species of hairy bipeds out in a remote corner of the Milky Way is going to destroy the entire universe.

That's just great.

I don't believe it though or at least hope not.

Is the Higgs inherently prone to unraveling space-time or is our newly developed ability to observe it the cause for this threat?

I think given the 14B yrs of the universe, if it was going to happen on its own it would have by now. So that begs the question, does the mere existence of our newly acquired technology threaten our or even the entire universe's existence?

Are there events the universe doesn't want us to see? Are we not allowed to know how things work?

All very interesting questions.

originally posted by: olaru12

Could someone please put in layman's terms exactly what the "God Particle" is

You're standing on it. We all are.

The god particle is particle that attracts money to the people that research it. Simple as that. We do not need this research to live on this world. I think they want to create a super weapon out of it. What good is a super weapon if it causes a destabilization of the ecosystem we live in though. We didn't need the atom bomb either. We would have still won the war. We haven't even dealt with nuclear waste yet from the power plants, we just store it for our grandchildren to deal with.

These things are extremely important to the people who make money off of them it seems. Most of the technology we have is not really needed, we were better off in the sixties.

You could try this link, it's 2010 before the Higgs Boson was 'declared' discovered.

io9.com...

Stephen Hawkin must have thoughts about this, and so a need to read his book to see why he is afear'd.

Relax, he was joking.

"A particle accelerator that reaches 100bn GeV would be larger than Earth, and is unlikely to be funded in the present economic climate."

Link

It's necessary research. A space-time collapse is not as painful as it seems, because there are advanced sciences by advanced societies not yet recognized by modern science. So this universe pops, and another one takes its place, instantaneously. That's parallel universe theory.

I think the hardest part about a failed universe is seeing yourself come around and say, it didn't work out. I am less fearful of what we can do to others and more about what other advanced sciences could do to us if we don't check the math. Like, UFOs popping out of the sky creepy, because they may have figured out the boson field thing already.

Life is but a dream.

The god particle now called the Higgs boson, is a bubble force field that gives atoms and their inside particles some roundness and connectivity. Think of a soap bubble full of smoke, that's an atom-sort of particle surrounded by boson. Now consider you could get your magic wand and open the soap bubble, take out the smoke, and put something else in. Then it gets interesting. Flying cars anybody? That's what I want, this is why the science is worth it.

Can it become unstable? Yes. But mostly this is perceived in subspace/hyperspace. Humans being predisposed to stay stable survive things on belief.

a reply to: olaru12

Could someone please put in layman's terms exactly what the "God Particle" is and which God are we referencing here?

It was coined the "god damned" particle because it was so god damned hard to find. A publisher (if I remember correctly) abbreviated it because of the way he saw the authors work, and because he thought it would receive better attention that way.

In any case, for all we know that's how the Big Bang happened and it's a infinity loop we must complete.

originally posted by: Bassago
a reply to: olaru12

Fabulous, so Stephen Hawking is now writing doom porn about how a tiny little species of hairy bipeds out in a remote corner of the Milky Way is going to destroy the entire universe.

That's just great.

I don't believe it though or at least hope not.

FINALLY! Doom Porn used correctly!

it is just conversation unless it is someone who knows enough that you should take their ideas and insights serious, than it is DOOM porn.

originally posted by: watchitburn
Is the Higgs inherently prone to unraveling space-time or is our newly developed ability to observe it the cause for this threat?

I think given the 14B yrs of the universe, if it was going to happen on its own it would have by now. So that begs the question, does the mere existence of our newly acquired technology threaten our or even the entire universe's existence?

Are there events the universe doesn't want us to see? Are we not allowed to know how things work?

All very interesting questions.

I think we were supposed to keep it simple.

Tower of Babel

4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.

5 And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.

6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.