Peter Higgs, a Nobel Prize winner in Physics, gained fame for proposing the theory of the Higgs boson, often referred to as the "God particle," which helped explain how matter formed after the Big Bang.
Peter Higgs Image Source: University of Edinburgh
Born on May 29, 1929, Peter Higgs earned his Ph.D. from King's College London in 1954 and joined the University of Edinburgh as a lecturer in 1960. By 1964, at the age of 35, Higgs had risen to the position of assistant professor at the University of Edinburgh. It was during this time that he first proposed the "Higgs Mechanism" and predicted the existence of a new type of particle, later dubbed the "Higgs boson," also known as the "God particle."
Nearly half a century after predicting the Higgs boson, it wasn't until 2012 that the European Organization for Nuclear Research's (CERN) Large Hadron Collider (LHC) confirmed the existence of this elusive particle, earning Higgs the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013.
"Peter Higgs is an exceptional scientist whose foresight and imagination have enriched our understanding of the world around us. His groundbreaking research has inspired countless scientists, and the valuable scientific legacy he leaves behind will continue to inspire generations of researchers," said Peter Mathieson, Principal of the University of Edinburgh.
