{"id":1890,"date":"2024-04-10T15:21:13","date_gmt":"2024-04-10T15:21:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/10\/professor-peter-higgs-pioneering-physicist-who-gave-name-to-higgs-boson-particle-has-died\/"},"modified":"2024-04-10T15:21:13","modified_gmt":"2024-04-10T15:21:13","slug":"professor-peter-higgs-pioneering-physicist-who-gave-name-to-higgs-boson-particle-has-died","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/10\/professor-peter-higgs-pioneering-physicist-who-gave-name-to-higgs-boson-particle-has-died\/","title":{"rendered":"Professor Peter Higgs: \u2018Pioneering\u2019 physicist who gave name to Higgs boson particle has died"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Nobel Prize-winning physicist Professor Peter Higgs, whose pioneering theory led to the discovery of the Higgs boson particle, has died aged 94.<\/p>\n

The “truly gifted” scientist predicted the existence of the new subatomic particle as far back as 1964.<\/p>\n

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His theory would not be confirmed until 2012, when experiments at the Large Hadron Collider at Cern finally proved the particle’s existence<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The following year, Prof Higgs, emeritus professor at Edinburgh University, was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for this work, along with Francois Englert.<\/p>\n

A statement from the university said: “It has been confirmed that Professor Peter Higgs has passed away at the age of 94.<\/p>\n

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“He died on Monday 8 April peacefully at home following a short illness. His family has asked that the media and public respect their privacy at this time.”<\/p>\n

Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, the university’s principal and vice-chancellor, said: “Peter Higgs was a remarkable individual – a truly gifted scientist whose vision and imagination have enriched our knowledge of the world that surrounds us.<\/p>\n

“His pioneering work has motivated thousands of scientists, and his legacy will continue to inspire many more for generations to come.”<\/p>\n

His theory suggested the existence of an invisible force field and associated subatomic particle permeating all things, working like glue to give form to stars, planets and even humans.<\/p>\n

Without the particle, the universe would have remained like a soup, according to the theory.<\/p>\n

Higgs boson, or the ‘God particle’, explains why matter has mass and holds the universe together.<\/p>\n

Prof Higgs wiped away a tear when the historic significance of the findings became apparent during an announcement at a seminar at the Cern headquarters near Geneva, Switzerland.<\/p>\n

“I never expected this to happen in my lifetime and shall be asking my family to put some champagne in the fridge,” he said.<\/p>\n

The discovery thrust the theoretical physicist into the limelight when he was 83, but it was not a situation the unassuming scientist was comfortable with – describing his fame as “a bit of a nuisance”.<\/p>\n

He once revealed he had turned down a knighthood in 1999 as he did not want any title, but he did accept recognition from the Queen in 2014 when he was appointed a Companion of Honour – which does not bring a title.<\/p>\n

Speaking after the event, he said: “It was quite a surprise to find I was first on the list and first in line, so I didn’t have anyone in front of me to imitate and make sure I got the movements right.”<\/p>\n

Described by colleagues as shy, he found himself being approached for autographs in the street in later life.<\/p>\n

He was also uncomfortable with his name alone being linked to the particle, saying the publicity had “neglected” to give credit to the other people involved.<\/p>\n

Particle physicist Brian Cox, a professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manchester, said Prof Higgs’ name “will be remembered as long as we do physics”.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

This post appeared first on sky.com<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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