Pentaquarks

Scientific research isn’t always simple; in fact, it’s often like rummaging around an unfamiliar room in the dark while wearing a blindfold. Under such conditions, it is inevitable that we have to make guesses about what we encounter. Sometimes those guesses turn out to be right and sometimes they don’t.

This kind of exploratory research is especially true at the very frontier of human understanding and a recent announcement at the LHC about a new form of matter called pentaquarks exemplifies this sort of investigation. The history of the search for pentaquarks involves previous observations that eventually faded under the light of more study. So what’s the deal with this recent announcement? Fermilab’s Dr. Don Lincoln tells us of the history of this interesting possible particle and gives us an idea of what we can expect in the near future.