The top student must be diligent

Chapter 169 CERN conference like a wet market

After completing his explanation, Xiao Yi turned to look at the physicists present.

But the conference room at CERN fell into silence, and no one made a sound.

Obviously, for most people, the shock brought by this news still makes them unable to recover for a while.

So, from now on, their physics studies will have one more research object, the X field?

Gee, this name has a bit of a sci-fi flavor, just like M-theory.

However, think back to the three characteristics Xiao Yi summarized just now...

Everyone's eyes couldn't help but widen.

The third point seems to be saying that this X field may even be the medium connecting the strong interaction force and the weak interaction force?

Frank Wilczek couldn't sit still and finally asked: "You mean, the X field can help us unify the strong and weak interactions?"

Xiao Yi glanced at the old man and recognized him quickly. Six months ago, when CERN and the Institute of High Energy held an online meeting, he also took a look and knew the identity of the old man.

He replied: "Hello Professor Wilczek, regarding this issue, I just said that it may be a unified medium, but it does not necessarily have to be."

Wilczek nodded slightly, and after thinking for a moment, he asked: "Where does your inference come from? If we only rely on our current observations, we cannot see that the X field plays a role in unifying the strong interaction force and the weak interaction force. What is the positive effect of force?”

Xiao Yi smiled, pointed at his brain, and said, "If I insist on making an inference, it probably comes from intuition."

"intuition?"

Everyone present was stunned.

Good guy, for such an important thing, is it possible for you to judge it by intuition?

In this regard, Xiao Yi just shrugged and said with a smile: "Isn't physics very particular about intuition? Sometimes I quite like physics. After all, compared to the rigorous logical inferences of mathematics, physics Sometimes you can just rely on your own feelings to guide you.”

"As R. Feynman said originally, physics is applied rather than purely abstract, and the 'poor' mathematicians have no intuitive guidance, only rigorous and cautious precise mathematical arguments."

Hearing Xiao Yi's explanation, everyone present was dumbfounded.

Okay, physics is like this. For top physicists, intuition is indeed a very useful thing.

Discussions on this point are common in the history of science.

However, Xiao Yi continued at this time: "Of course, in physics, if it is explained directly, it is obviously a bit rogue. We still have to try to embody this intuition through mathematics or experiments."

"Therefore... the explanation for my intuition will appear after a period of time, maybe a long time, or maybe not long ago. Everyone can look forward to it."

When he said this, everyone present became curious.

An explanation of why the X field may be the unified medium of weak and strong interactions?

How to explain this?

Everyone present wanted to know.

But at this moment, Edward Witten, who had been silent just now, suddenly spoke up: "Are you trying to prove the mass gap problem of the Yang-Mills equation?"

Xiao Yi raised his eyebrows. He was surprised that his purpose was actually discovered. At this time, he also turned to look at the old physicist, and then smiled and said: "It turns out to be Professor Witten, you I’m not surprised if you can tell, but I’m still curious how you figured it out?”

Edward Witten smiled, and like Xiao Yi just now, he pointed to his brain and said, "Here, it comes from the intuition of a physicist."

Xiao Yi suddenly burst into laughter.

The chat between the two people once again shocked everyone in the room.

What?

Xiao Yi is studying the mass gap problem of the Yang-Mills equation?

And the following chat between the two revealed news that they couldn't believe.

"It seems that you should have discovered the X field during your research." Edward Witten asked, "Really?"

Xiao Yi nodded: "Yes, when I was using topological quantum field theory to study the mass gap problem, I accidentally derived such a strange field."

"I didn't know what this field did at first, but it wasn't until some time ago that I reanalyzed a large number of W boson masses, and I suddenly realized the meaning behind this strange field."

"That's what I just said."

Xiao Yi smiled: "So, this fully demonstrates that for subjects like physics, it is very important to combine theory and experiment for research."

Witten took a deep look at Xiao Yi and said, "So... you are now very close to proving the existence of the mass gap?"

Xiao Yi pondered for a moment and finally said: "To a certain extent, it is like this. At least I am very close to the final answer."

Witten laughed: "It seems that I need to go to this year's International Congress of Mathematicians. Maybe I can see the birth of such a great theory at this conference."

Xiao Yi was in tears and laughed: "Please don't say it... I'm not 100% sure yet!"

Witten smiled heartily: "I believe you."

Xiao Yi shook his head helplessly.

Trust from Professor Edward Witten?

Hmm...

It sounds really exciting.

…

The two of them were chatting across the screen, oblivious to the people around them. In the conference room, other researchers at CERN finally couldn't control themselves and started discussing when they learned that Xiao Yi was very close to proving the mass gap problem.

The whole conference room became noisy.

"Can the mass gap problem really be proven in our time?"

"Didn't Professor Witten say that the mass gap problem is too difficult for now?"

"My Jesus, I can't believe this is true!"

"Professor Donald, I remember you study mathematical physics, right? How far have you studied the mass gap problem in mathematical physics?"

Professor Donald, who was asked, showed a sweaty expression: "You ask me, who should I ask? Mathematical physics is not just about the mass gap problem. What's more, the number of people who dare to study this problem in our mathematical physics community can be counted on two hands."

In addition, there are also some people present who will attend the International Congress of Mathematicians in July this year. After all, the relationship between mathematics and physics is quite close, and there are also reports on mathematical physics at the International Congress of Mathematicians.

These people listened to the conversation between Xiao Yi and Witten, and they heard something from the words: Xiao Yi may use the mass gap problem of the Yang-Mills equation as the theme of his report at the conference more than four months later, and in front of everyone, he will kill another millennium problem!

For a while, they all looked forward to the grand event in the mathematics world in a few months.

Xiao Yi, will he succeed?

In addition to these CERN researchers, they were also asked all kinds of questions by the people from the Institute of High Energy Physics who came from China.

These questions made them sweat profusely, especially the director Tang Yifang.

"Professor Tang, Xiao Yi is from your institute. I have never heard of you before. You are really good at hiding it!"

"Professor Tang, I didn't expect that your Institute of High Energy Physics has so much research on this kind of mathematical physics problem. Maybe you can have a cooperative exchange with our Max Planck Institute of Physics. What do you think?"

"Professor Tang, Xiao Yi is from your institute. You should know how much he has studied this problem, right?"

"Professor Tang..."

Faced with all kinds of questions, Tang Yifang was overwhelmed.

Their Institute of High Energy Physics is so hidden?

It's obviously Xiao Yi who is hiding it!

It has nothing to do with them.

Their Institute of High Energy Physics has been working with CERN to process the one million sets of data for the past six months. Don’t you CERN people know this?

There are also people from the Max Planck Institute of Physics. If you want to exchange and learn, they welcome you, but...

Let’s not talk about mathematical physics.

Da mee da mee.

They are really not familiar with mathematical physics at the Institute of High Energy Physics. If you really want to exchange, you should go to the Institute of Theoretical Physics. They are familiar with this!

What else... Xiao Yi is one of ours, so we know how far he has studied the mass gap problem?

Let alone Xiao Yi is not one of theirs at all... In fact, he almost became one of the Institute of High Energy Physics. It’s a pity that when Tang Yifang was communicating with Xiao Yi, he completely ignored his identity as a student, not to mention that Xiao Yi was going to study for a master’s degree in the second half of last year.

But even if Xiao Yi was from the Institute of High Energy Physics, Tang Yifang never thought that this young man was actually studying the mass gap problem.

Even to this extent, it has reached the final critical moment...

At this time, Tang Yifang was incredulous, and he just wanted to say to these people: Don't ask me, I don't know anything!

...

After a conversation with Professor Witten, Xiao Yi looked at the time and then said: "Okay, it's getting late in China, I won't bother you at CERN anymore. My suggestions have been given, and I can't interfere with your decision whether to adopt them. After all, if high-energy physics is unpredictable, maybe there will be one collision in tens of millions of times that will allow us to find evidence of the existence of the X field?"

"Well, that's all. Goodbye everyone."

Fabiola Gianotti also came back to his senses at this time and said: "Thank you for your advice, I wish you a good sleep."

The video ended and the big screen went black again.

After taking a look at the still noisy scene, which was like a vegetable market, Fabiola Gianotti clapped his hands and said, "Okay, everyone, quiet down, please quiet down."

Soon, the meeting room returned to silence, and everyone looked at the Director-General.

"So, since Xiao Yi gave us advice, the current topic is back to the previous topic, [whether to make the W boson mass verification project the next primary scientific goal of CERN], now everyone thinks, do we need to change the previous decision?"