← PBS Space Time · Season 2026

This Particle Solved Everything. We Just Found Out It Isn't Real

S2026 · E2 · 22 Jan 2026 · 20 min

The universe thrums with quantum fields; and the particles of matter and force emerge as vibrational manifestations of the deep symmetries of these fields. The layers and reflections of those symmetries give us the wonderful richness of what we call the standard model of particle physics. Except there seems to be something missing: the sterile neutrino.