NPR's All Things Considered interviews Dick Teresi, the man credited with naming the Higgs-Boson Particle the "God Particle."
He told Melissa Block that the name was born out of a joke, a working title he never thought the publisher would buy. In fact, he said, "for us being atheists, it's kind of a scary, evil kind of particle that obfuscates what's really going on."
So what does he say to his detractors?
"They protest too much," he said. In fact, the name will likely stick, he said, just like another famous deregatory term has — "The Big Bang." Teresi added that in truth, he didn't resent most physicists for complaining. The only one he has a problem with is Peter Higgs himself.
