Challenge to a 'Constant' Shakes Modern Physics From: The Washington Post | Date: August 20, 2001| Author: William Harwood | Copyright 2001 The Washington Post. This material is published under license from the Washington Post.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post.Copyright information

In 1999, a paper in the prestigious scientific journal Physical Review Letters indicated that one of nature's fundamental constants - - a number that, in effect, reflects how tightly atomic particles stick together -- might be different now than it was in the distant past.

In the world of physics, this was a potentially revolutionary result. If the number known as the fine structure constant -- alpha - - was, in fact, changing over time, the "standard model" of physics, governing every...

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