Synopses & Reviews
In Massive, prize-winning science journalist Ian Sample tells the story of the race to locate the Higgs Boson, the elusive particle whose existence remains to be proven. Since 1964, when Peter Higgs described an over-arching theory of mass that depended on the Higgs boson, the scientific community has been possessed by the increasingly competitive race to prove its existence. The ensuing four-decade quest has cost billions of dollars and consumed the attention of scientific luminaries and of politicians eager to ensure that their home country would be the one to get credit for discovering the long-sought-after particle. Now, with the Large Hadron Collider up and running, the discovery of the Higgs boson seems finally to be within our grasp. Samples Massive provides the juicy backstory to what will possibly be the defining discovery of modern physics, complete with intense rivalries, clashing egos, and grand ambition.
Synopsis
A prize-winning science writers history of the forty-year search for the Higgs boson, and the intense rivalries, clashing egos, and grand ambition that led to a world-changing discovery
Synopsis
The biggest science story of our time,
Massive spans four decades, weaving together the personal narratives and international rivalries behind the search for the God" particle, or Higgs boson. A story of grand ambition, intense competition, clashing egos, and occasionally spectacular failures,
Massive is the first book that reveals the science, culture, and politics behind the biggest unanswered question in modern physicswhat gives things mass?
Drawing upon his unprecedented access to Peter Higgs, after whom the particle is named, award-winning science writer Ian Sample chronicles the multinational and multibillion-dollar quest to solve the mystery of mass. For scientists, to find the God particle is to finally understand the origin of mass, and until now, the story of their search has never been told.
Synopsis
A lively account of the genesis of both the [Large Hadron Collider] and its most famous particulate quarry
We are kept hooked by its fine reportage, which makes clear the sheer achievement of the scientists and engineers who have built the LHC, the most complex machine ever made in the service of pure science.” Graham Farmelo, The Guardian (London)
About the Author
Ian Sample is an award-winning science correspondent at the Guardian. His writing appears regularly across the news, features, comment and weekend magazine sections of the newspaper and associated websites. He holds a PhD in biomedical science from Queen Mary, University of London and has won several journalism prizes, including two from the Association of British Science Writers, which named him investigative journalist of the year in 2005. He joined the Guardian in 2003 after four years as a reporter, feature writer and news editor at New Scientist magazine. He lives in London.