Physics: Proton radius smaller than believed, European scientists say

LA Times ^ | July 7, 2010 | Thomas H. Maugh II

[J Edgar]

Thanks for see through the fog, and gleaning the important facts that have world wide impact! ROFLMAO

[dangus]

Actually, I don’t think they do. But the amount of space it takes up is spherical because it moves at high speed. It’s actually a wave. If that doesn’t make sense to you, it’s because it shouldn’t. Any attempt to relate the nature of subatomic particles is pure metaphor, and I’d be lying if I told you I understood it.

[Moose Burger]

Look again, you may find the Schrödinger’s zombie cat.

[madamemayhem]

it’s probably shrinking due to global warming. obviously this is Bush’s fault.

[dr_who]

Here's a picture of the universe 3.1E-13 seconds after the big bang:

[UCANSEE2]

Why do they assume that a proton is spherical?

Why do people believe the Earth is round?

[NicknamedBob]

"Just wait 'till they figure out it isn't really there at all!"

It makes up for what it lacks by having a positive attitude.

[lefty-lie-spy]

It’s a quantum particle, it can be any shape you want it to be.

[UCANSEE2]

(By the way, even ellipses and prolate and oblate spheroids have radii.)

Yeah... well, nobody's perfect.

One day there will be a cure.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Captain Beyond. Admit it -- we all thought the Proton was hiding something.

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[bgill]

Yeah, that’s what they all say.

[NicknamedBob]

"Why do people believe the Earth is round?"

It is a well-known fact that it has a lot of surface tension.

[Salamander]

‘The proton finding won’t impact most people’s daily lives.”

Like hell it won’t.

I’m emotionally devastated.

I’ll *never* be the same again.

[dr_lew]

Atomic spectroscopy measures transitions of the electrons between orbits in the atom, and does not depend on the details of structure of the proton.

[lefty-lie-spy]

OK, so electrons are fundamental, but a few quarks can still be any shape you want them to be.

[Captain Beyond]

Maybe Proton's PR people need to contact Algore’s PR people and they can hook him up and get an extended, enlarged, airbrushed cover on Rolling Stone Mag to help out with this. Or Proton could just contact Jimmy Johnson and get some free Extends Pills.

[smokingfrog]

A proton at rest can be shaped like a ball — the expected shape and the only one described in physics textbooks. Or it can be shaped like a peanut, like a rugby ball or even something similar to a bagel.

[Quix]

Dooooodness!

That must have required a VERY tiny micrometer!

[coon2000]

This is proof that we are really living in a hollow sphere and the blinky light thingy’s and the Sun and Moon are just attached to the rotating ceiling.

[shibumi]

I'd really, really like to meet the one person whose daily life is impacted by a finding about proton size.

Maybe it's this person ...