Does Anti-Matter Fall Up?

Posted on June 6, 2008
Filed Under Science |

OK, my business partner mentioned to me a Slashdot article one whether anti-matter fell up. I was incredulous at first. After all if it has positive mass what’s the question? All theory says it falls down. But I guess it’s never been empirically tested. (See Baez’ Physics FAQ) I guess there are a few theoretical models where it falls up. Anyway, CERN is doing an experiment on it. It’ll almost certainly be one of those experiments confirming what we already know. But in the remote off chance it results in something different I suppose it’s worth doing.

Comments

5 Responses to “Does Anti-Matter Fall Up?”
1 Gerald Smith on June 8th, 2008 6:24 pm

Of course it is worth doing. Until it has been tested, it still remains completely in theory realm. At least after CERN’s test, we’ll be able to at least say that on one occasion it fell down,up,and/or sideways.

There have been many theories in science that were taken at face value, only to totally throw off the experts when shown to be something else in testing.

But we only “know” the direction anti-matter falls based on theory. Once we do the experiment, we’ll empirically “know”–at least based on the assumptions of the experiment.

What you both say is of course true. However if a theory has been tested in almost all other areas we have good confidence it’ll hold here. I’m certainly not opposed to such experiments although the ever present cost/benefit calculation has to hold.

4 Gerald Smith on June 10th, 2008 7:28 pm

Cost/benefit? Since when has that stopped the Democrats or Republicans from spending money in the last many years??? ;-)

I’d rather see it go to something of potential value, like this, than squandered on subsidies for oil companies that are already making a decent profit. After all, if the theory doesn’t hold up, imagine all the new questions that will be engendered by such an experiment.

Gerald I think both the current administration and also the Democratic leadership don’t fund science enough. (Remember that Democrats control congress which holds funding strings) However my cost/benefit analysis was more in terms of “given funding from the US, EU, Japan and other sources where should we spend it.”

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