The_root_of_all_evil post=18.69854.713428 said:
One thing I'm unsure about
If they discover the Higgs Boson, does that mean Einstein, Newton and the like were wrong?
If they don't, can we assume God exists?
No. They are approximations of the underlying truth - the behaviour of which can be predicted using these mathematical 'models'.
These 'models' are
not reality. Therefore it is perfectly acceptable to have multiple ones if they are in harmony or operate at different scales. So, Newton is still useful for building suspension bridges, but you need Einstein for GPS Satellites.
The Higgs Boson is the 'H' symbol in a very complex equation called The Standard Model. In a sense it is a fudge thought up in the 60's by a Mr Higgs who wanted to get his sums to work. More interesting, in my view is the work of Steven Weinberg who said that rather than there being 12 fundamental particles (I'm talking about things smaller than an atom or proton) there were double that amount in a theory called 'Supersymmetry'. I think this will prove to be penultimate step before a complete Theory of Everything (which includes Gravity and explains everything about how the Universe got started).
By the way, despite many scare stories the World cannot end today as a result of the LHC being turned on, as they are only testing the equipment at the moment. You have to wait until, I think... the 26th... for real near-lightspeed particle collisions.
So, everyone is tensing up for the wrong day.