(Image source: CERN)
BY NICHOLE CARTMELL
The so-called “God particle” is a step
closer to being confirmed. Physicists collaborating
at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider say there’s
increasing evidence that the particle they
found last year is in fact a Higgs Boson.
Last July, CERN scientists announced evidence
suggesting they found a particle that would
explain how matter attains its mass. Now,
more research further links the discovery
to the mass-like structure known as the Higgs
boson.
Results from the latest round of research
suggest the particle’s spin mirrors that
of a Higgs.
One collaborator on the experiment said, "This
is the start of a new story of physics." (Via
BBC) 
Now if you aren’t a scientist you might
be wondering what makes the Higgs Boson different
from what we all learned in science classes
growing up.
Right now the particles we know as neutrons,
protons and electrons, and the forces that
direct them make up the standard model. But
this theory doesn’t explain how the particles
get their mass. (Picture Via AAAS)
This is where the Higgs Boson comes into play.
Simply put, the Higgs field is like the crowd
of fans that would surround a famous person
if they walked in the room. Each one of these
fans then represents a Higgs boson, giving
the particle or famous person — mass. (Video
Via  CERN)
Still pretty complex. And, there is still
one big question left to answer. What about
the dark matter that makes up at least a fourth
of the universe?
The Daily Mail pointed out... “Many scientists
and cosmologists will be disappointed that
the LHC's preliminary 3-year run from March
2010 to last month has not produced evidence
of the two grails of 'new physics' - dark
matter and supersymmetry.”
CERN reports more research is needed to find
out if this particle is the Higgs Boson that
fits within the Standard Model or goes beyond
it.
