Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail

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In summary, Woit discusses the concept of the "Holy Grail of Physics" and argues that understanding why the vacuum state breaks electroweak gauge symmetry is a more deserving problem for this title. He believes that solving this question would lead to a greater understanding of various aspects of the standard model. He also mentions that the LHC experiments may provide new clues about this problem in 2008. Woit also brings up the issue of string theory and how some physicists may ignore its failures in hopes of finding evidence for it at the LHC. He suggests that if the LHC reveals the true cause of the symmetry breaking, string theory may be abandoned in favor of this new understanding. Some readers may have a different perspective on this issue
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-----quote from Woit, March 19 blog----

The Holy Grail of Physics

It's pretty common these days for people to refer to successfully quantizing general relativity as "the Holy Grail of Physics", but it seems to me that there is a different problem that better deserves this name:

"Why does the vacuum state break electroweak gauge symmetry?"

If we could answer this question, we'd probably understand where masses of particles come from, as well as just about all of the undetermined parameters of the standard model (except for a couple ratios of the strengths of the gauge interactions). The exciting thing about this problem is that we have good reason to expect experiments to give us some new clues about it in 2008 when data from the LHC begins to come in...

-----end quote---

any comment?
 
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-------another quote re a different Holy Grail----
...Gross and others seem intent on ignoring the failures of string theory, desperately hoping that superpartners will pop out of the LHC, thereby providing at least some vindication of the train of reasoning that lead to string theory. What will be interesting to see will be what Gross et. al. do when this doesn't happen. Will they drop string theory? Quite possibly the LHC will revolutionize physics by showing us what is really causing the spontaneous breaking of the electroweak gauge symmetry. If this happens, everyone will abandon string theory and start working on this, 1984-2008 then becoming a period in the history of physics that particle theorists try and not think about.
-----end quote----

does anyone wish to comment?
It sounds like a radically different perspective. The LHC, instead of finding superpartners (comfort, if not firm corroboration, for our leading theory) might find clues to why or how this symmetry is broken. Can anyone picture what such clues might be, or speculate as to how clues might appear? Does anyone share this perspective or is Woit alone in adopting it.
 
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What is Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail?

Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail is a theoretical concept in physics that proposes a unifying theory that can explain all fundamental forces of nature, including gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nuclear forces.

How does Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail differ from other theories?

Unlike other theories, Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail aims to incorporate all the fundamental forces of nature into a single, unified framework, rather than treating them as separate phenomena. This would provide a more complete understanding of the universe and potentially lead to new discoveries.

Has there been any progress towards achieving Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail?

While there have been ongoing efforts towards finding a unifying theory, such as string theory and loop quantum gravity, there is currently no widely accepted theory that fully meets the criteria of Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail. However, there have been some promising developments and ongoing research in this area.

What are the potential implications of a successful Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail?

If a unifying theory is found that meets the criteria of Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail, it could have significant implications for our understanding of the universe and the laws that govern it. This could potentially lead to new technological advancements and a deeper understanding of the fundamental nature of reality.

What challenges are scientists facing in their pursuit of Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail?

One of the major challenges in finding a unifying theory is the lack of experimental evidence to support or refute different theories. Additionally, the complexity of the problem and the limitations of current technology make it a difficult task. Collaboration and interdisciplinary approaches may be necessary to overcome these challenges and make progress towards Woit's idea of a Better Holy Grail.

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