At a science seminar in Geneva, a group of scientists are preparing to make an announcement. It's an announcement that many believe could revolutionise what we know about the mass of, well, everything - but others aren't so sure. Do you believe in the elusive "God" particle?
The Higgs boson, often referred to as 'the God particle' due to its importance, as of yet isn't real. It's a hypothetical thing that researchers believe is there, but also isn't - a subatomic particle that hangs off other particles in "empty space". As the Sydney Morning Herald put it - it's like a group of hangers-on weighing down a celebrity at a party.
Part of the reason why the Large Hadron Collider was built; the elusive boson was first predicted in the 1960s by Dr Peter Higgs, of the University of Edinburgh.
The Collider accelerates proton beams around a 27-km circuit at speeds close to that of light, smashing them together to momentarily create new particles. It's thought that these particles could reveal more about this mysterious boson.
The theory of the Higgs boson is currently the leading hypothesis on the mass of matter, and how particles interact. But no one knows how much the boson itself could weigh.
Sceptics have been quick to dispel hope of a new discovery, with European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) director-general, Rolf-Dieter Heuer, saying there will not be enough evidence to definitely prove the particle's existence.
As of yet, however, no one else has come up with a better explanation.
Science fiction has brought us the idea of an invisible fourth dimension, operating unbeknownst to us simple-folk of the 3D world.
There's also the new technicolour fad - what once was an innovation with your television set is now a theory in physics. It's basically a mechanism through which elementary particles acquire their own masses.
Sure, countless theories exist, but for now physicists are waiting for tonight's announcement with bated breath. Do we need a Higgs boson to explain mass?
According to researcher Dr Aldo Saavedra, of the University of Sydney, the announcement could be something "interesting".
It will be "tantalising, but won't be definitive", he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
It's typical for scientists not to believe in a God, but will they ever believe in a God particle?
[SMH]
