The Higgs Field, explained - Don Lincoln

One of the most significant scientific discoveries of the early 21st century is surely the Higgs boson, but the boson and the Higgs Field that allows for that magic particle are extremely difficult to grasp. Don Lincoln outlines an analogy that all of us can appreciate, starring a large dinner party, a raucous group of physicists, and Peter Higgs himself.

Lesson by Don Lincoln, animation by Powerhouse Animation Studios Inc.

[Nirlep]

Now, This was the simplest explanation I have ever found on Internet for this very complicated subject. Thanks. 😊

[ZOCCOK]

A Guy created a story around Champagne to explain something not related to Champagne so as to win a bottle of Champagne

[lookylooky]

This is the best explanation of higgs. Know I understand. Good job

[ThomaYeo]

Just to confirm my concept of Higgs Boson is correct. Particles that have mass is because of its interaction with the Higgs field. The more the interaction the more the mass it has. The Higgs Boson is actually the excitation of the Higgs field. Based on the analogy in the video above, the excitation of the field can be said as a rumour passed into the crowd. This causes the rumour to be passed down through the crowd and created a small clump of people forming in the crowd moving from one end to the other end of the crowd as shown in the video. The Higgs Boson can be represented by the small clump of people. Could anyone help me verify if my understanding is correct? Thanks and much appreciated!! :) :)

[LydellAaron]

I love this analogy and explanation of the quantum nature of the attraction. 9 years later.

[tomsmith]

Peter Higgs traveled around the world but never left his own field

[aldotorres]

Whoever came up with that analogy deserves that bottle of champagne for making it understandable for the rest of us.

[VGF]

So in this case, the only way to travel at the speed of light is to make sure the higgs boson does not interact with your atoms, hence making you massless?

EDIT 28/06/2021: I've discovered a long time ago that practically all of our mass (as humans and every real life object) has something to do with interaction involving quarks in an atom and the concentration of energy invovled. It's not from the higgs boson.

the higgs boson only provides mass to *fundamental particles*

[sephirothjc]

That's my man Don Lincoln, one of the best at explaining complicated stuff out there

[sunstorm]

Good point Fred! I found myself asking "but what makes some particles interact strongly while others don't?" Which is the real question ...unanswered.

[KCFreitag]

This explanation gives me more joy than I can convey! Thank you!

[alfabet_--]

Now THIS is brilliant, I finally understand what the matter with the whole Higgs and field and where the mass comes from

[MrVikingsandra]

Thank you! I'm reading a chapter about this and I desperately needed visuals. Great job 👏

[fatimah_sirin]

Particle physics has been the most exhausting thing to learn so far.

[ciuuin]

Oh, this is good. I was always confused as to how the field could give mass to a particle if the field itself had no mass, and how the Highs boson, which does have mass, could be what I thought was a particle in the field, since the field had no mass.

Great analogy. You earned that champagne.

[devayanikv]

But on what basis do we determine a particle's interact with the higgs field??

[KastroCake]

so what makes a partical have more interaction?

[Materialist]

This explanation was so helpful, been trying to find a good analogy for a while now.

[maddoxtolliver]

*so, it sounds like **_"PRE-HIGGS"_** exposed particles have some sort of **_"signature"_** output that determines how the field **_"treats"_** them. the predetermined particles that **_remain "mass-less", _** put out a signature that gets the particle **_denied_** mass from the field. the particles that **_receive mass_** tells the field how much **_"SPECIFIC"_** mass they'll need when they exit.*

[Soldierofwings]

If that video is right and our current understanding of that is correct theoretically if some one found a way to nullify the Higgs field so That it didn't interact with regular matter the same way it ignores particles like light then you could make matter with no mass and if massless matter is possible then time travel is possible. Because time travel is only possible with infinity energy or having no mass. Could be wrong tho some one check