The First Minister says, ‘Last week I was delighted to meet Scottish scientists and research teams who have been doing important work to help us understand the world and the universe.  First, I met Professor Peter Higgs, one of the most famous figures in Scottish science. Prof Higgs famously developed a theory into the basic building blocks of the universe and a particle that was named the ‘Higgs boson’, while working at the University of Edinburgh in the 1960s.  Last year researchers at the CERN laboratory in Switzerland confirmed the discovery of a previously-unknown boson whose behaviour so far has been consistent with the ‘Higgs boson’.  

To recognise Prof Higgs’ achievements and help inspire a new generation of scientists among today’s school pupils around Scotland, we have launched anannual Higgs Prize. This will give outstanding young school physicists the chance to win a trip to the CERN facility, where work continues on researching the Higgs particle.’

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