Beyond the Standard Model: Searching for New Physics

  1. The Standard Model explains much of the universe—but leaves huge mysteries unsolved.
  2. It can’t account for dark matter, which outweighs normal matter five to one.
  3. Dark energy, driving cosmic expansion, is also beyond its reach.
  4. The force of gravity isn’t included in the Standard Model’s framework.
  5. Physicists hunt for “supersymmetry,” a theory predicting partner particles for all known ones.
  6. Extra dimensions of space are another possibility hinted at by advanced theories.
  7. Particle accelerators like the LHC test these ideas by smashing particles at record energies.
  8. Neutrinos—tiny ghostlike particles—may hold clues to physics beyond the Standard Model.
  9. Discoveries could reveal why the universe favors matter over antimatter.
  10. Searching beyond the Standard Model is the next frontier in unlocking nature’s deepest secrets.