Context:
The Experimental High Energy Physics group of Bose Institute (BI) has been honored with the 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics for its contributions as part of ALICE at CERN.
Breakthrough Prize 2025
- Awarded to researchers from 70+ countries, representing four experimental collaborations at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC): ATLAS, CMS, ALICE, LHCb.
- Recognized for contributions in:
- Detailed measurements of Higgs boson properties, confirming symmetry-breaking mechanism of mass generation.
- Discovery of new strongly interacting particles.
- Study of rare processes & matter-antimatter asymmetry.
- Exploration of nature at shortest distances & most extreme conditions at LHC.
4 Experimental Collaborations at LHC
- A Toroidal LHC Apparatus (ATLAS) – Largest detector ever built for a particle collider.
- Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) – General-purpose detector studying Standard Model (including Higgs boson) & searching for extra dimensions and dark matter particles.
- A Large Ion Collider Experiment (ALICE) – Focuses on Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP)—a state of extremely hot & dense matter that existed right after the Big Bang.
- Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) – Investigates differences between matter & antimatter via study of beauty quark (b quark).
- b Quark is second-heaviest known quark, carrying negative one-third electric charge of an electron.
CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research)
- Established in 1954 as Europe’s first joint venture after WWII.
- An international scientific organization for collaborative research in high-energy particle physics.
- Located on the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva, Switzerland.
- Has 23 Member States & 10 Associate Member States.
- India is an Associate Member.
Source: PIB
Previous Year Question
Consider the following statements in respect of Bharat Ratna and Padma Awards:
1. Bharat Ratna and Padma Awards are titled under Article 18(1) of ‘the Constitution of India.
2. Padma Awards, which were instituted in the year 1954, were suspended only once.
3. The number of Bharat Ratna Awards is restricted to a maximum of five in a particular year.
Which of the above statements are not correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2021 Prelims]
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (d)
Explanation:
In 1996, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of the National Awards — Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Sri. It ruled that these awards do not amount to ‘titles’ within the meaning of Article 18 which prohibits only hereditary titles of nobility. Therefore, they are not violative of Article 18 as the theory of equality does not mandate that merit should not be recognized. Hence, Statement 1 is incorrect.
The award was started by former President Dr. Rajendra Prasad on January 2nd, 1954, are announced every year on the occasion of Republic Day except for brief interruption(s) during the years 1978 and 1979,1993 to 1997, 2020, and 2021. it is suspended many times. Hence, Statement 2 is incorrect.
The number of Bharat Ratna Awards is restricted to a maximum of three in a particular year. It was awarded to four people in the same year only once — in 1999. Hence, Statement 3 is incorrect.