Neutrinos first in velocity, light is second (?!)
When taken by a strong urgency, we use to say something like .".....as fast as light" or "....faster than light", just because light has been considered the fastest thing on Earth. This apparently, has been the case until September 22nd, 2011. News were published that day about a Swiss/Italian experiment finding that Neutrinos, subatomic, fundamental particles can travel faster than the speed of light.
The experiment, called OPERA, standing for (Oscillation Project with Emulsion tRacking Apparatus), involved the Gran Sasso National laboratory in Italy and the CERN, the major High-Energy Physics laboratory of Europe, located in Geneva, Switzerland.
According to some Scientists, the finding, if confirmed, could shake the foundation of Albert Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity, the cornerstone of Modern Physics. Einstein's theory, however, has been also the most tested and verified theory and it doesn't seem to have failed till now. Let's see how our greatest Physicists in the world will be able to reconcile and fit these new findings, if confirmed, with all we learned till now on Modern Physics.
If you want to read more about the findings, you can go at a speed "faster than Neutrinos" (of course, I'm Joking - take it easy!) here:
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110922/full/news.2011.554.html
http://arxiv.org/abs/1109.4897
The experiment, called OPERA, standing for (Oscillation Project with Emulsion tRacking Apparatus), involved the Gran Sasso National laboratory in Italy and the CERN, the major High-Energy Physics laboratory of Europe, located in Geneva, Switzerland.
According to some Scientists, the finding, if confirmed, could shake the foundation of Albert Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity, the cornerstone of Modern Physics. Einstein's theory, however, has been also the most tested and verified theory and it doesn't seem to have failed till now. Let's see how our greatest Physicists in the world will be able to reconcile and fit these new findings, if confirmed, with all we learned till now on Modern Physics.
If you want to read more about the findings, you can go at a speed "faster than Neutrinos" (of course, I'm Joking - take it easy!) here:
http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110922/full/news.2011.554.html
http://arxiv.org/abs/1109.4897
