Grand Unification

Abstract: The discovery of the Higgs boson and the subsequent award of the Nobel Prize completes the Standard Model of Particle Physics. However, the Standard Model is not a complete description of fundamental physics and leaves many questions unanswered. In this colloquium I will give an overview of the Standard Model and discuss its flaws and omissions. I will show how many of these deficiencies may be overcome by building a Grand Unified Theory which describes all three of the Standard Model forces as the broken remnants of just one force, manifest at high energies. I will take a pedagogic approach and require no specialist knowledge.

David J. Miller (U. Glasgow)