12/2    Looking for a "LHC and Higgs bosom for Dummies" equivalent site.
        I'd like to learn more but most sites out there are just way
        beyond me. Is there a dummy's version for it?
        \_ W = weak force, EM = electromagnetic force, S = strong force,
           G = gravity. They're the four forces, and the holy grail of
           physics is to unify them all in a single theory -- the Grand
           Unification Theory. W, EM, and S have been combined
           successfully, but G works so differently that all attempts
           to unify it with the others have failed so far. The basic
           problem is that general relativity and quantum mechanics
           have highly incompatible frameworks, so it's hard to bridge
           that gap. String theorists swear they're onto something,
           but the jury's still out on that.
           <DEAD>abstrusegoose.com/175<DEAD>
           \_ Aside from whether or not there is an existing unification
              theory for 3 or 4 of the forces, what does it mean by "unifying
              the forces into a single theory" in the first place?  Does it
              mean simply coming up with an equation that involves 3 or 4
              variables that represent the forces?  Does something silly like
              "W + EM + S + G = ma" (ie. total force = mass * accel) count?
              -- dummy #2
              \_ No, it's more like looking for, "this is why the universe
                 works the way it does."  Right now we have ways to describe
                 why particles behave the way they do, and why gravity
                 behaves the way it does, but not both at the same time.
        \_ Is "Quantum Physics For Dummies" (ISBN-10: 0470381884) any good?
           \- Some of this is pretty hard to understand and watered-down
              explanations almost mean nothing. But you can at least get a
              sense of what some of the fundamental questions are:
              --what are unification and symmetry about?
              --where does mass come from
              --how many fundamental physical constants are there
              --what is the "hierarchy problem" etc.
              --what is consistant/inconsistant with the std model
              i think "Dreams of a Final Theory" is pretty good, but not
              that current. You can also look at Lisa Randall's "Warped
              Passages" book (if you were in berkeley cs a while ago, her
              Passages" book (if you were in berkeley CS a while ago, her
              sister Dana was a grad student here). if you have ome specific
              question, i can try to address that. Qs like "what do they
              mean by 'the higgs gives rise to mass'" or "what does 'quark
              confinement' mean?" have sort of a hand wavey explantions,
              while "what is gauge renormalization?" doesnt.