symmetry
2018 is the centenary of a mathematical result that changed the character of physics.
Symmetry is one of the two guiding principles in understanding probabilities – if different outcomes are equivalent they should have the same probability.
After having explored our economic analogy for the force of electromagnetism, let us turn to the weak force.
Current physical theories suggest that beautiful symmetries underly the fundamental particles and forces of nature. We describe those symmetries using an analogy from economics, and even rediscover the famous Higgs boson.
We all instinctively recognise symmetry when we see it, but describing it in words is harder than you might think.
We all know what symmetry is. But why does it play such a central role in modern physics?
A closer look at the power of symmetry in physics.