Look Who it Was Random video

Why Particle Physicists Play Dice | ATLAS, LHC & CERN | What the Physics

1,376 views · Published 8 June 2017 · 6:14 · Indexed 4 October 2026

Channel: Martin Archer · 2017 · Science & Technology

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With particle collisions at the Large Hadron Collider having recently restarted again this year, let's take a look at how physicists at CERN actually find new particles - it's something of an elaborate game of dice!


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00:45 Intro to a game of fair and loaded dice
01:10 Dice, probabilities and hypothesis testing in sigmas
02:52 Rolling the dice and building up results
04:36 Connection to finding new particles


Links for more information

ATLAS
https://atlas.cern/

Statistics of Dice Throwing
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Math/dice.html
http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/probability/calcdice.htm

Hypothesis Testing
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistical_hypothesis_testing
https://onlinecourses.science.psu.edu/statprogram/node/138


Thanks to Dr Ulla Blumenschein, Dr Eram Rizvi, Dr Jon Hays, and Dr Marcella Bona of QMUL along with the Outreach team at ATLAS for help making this video possible
Music by Silent Partner, and Riot

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