Einstein Wrong? Maybe Just Faulty Wiring

A simple loose cord may explain last year's controversy
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 23, 2012 6:00 AM CST
Einstein Wrong? Maybe Just Faulty Wiring
This undated file photo shows famed physicist Albert Einstein.   (AP Photo)

More evidence that last year's furor over the accuracy of Albert Einstein's work got blown way out of proportion: Physicists believed they'd seen particles traveling faster than light, a phenomenon that would disprove the theory of relativity. But the controversial observations may have been the result of nothing more than a loose wire, experts say. A GPS error may have caused the mistake, says a scientist at CERN, where the initial results were reported.

"A possible explanation has been found. But we won't know until we have tested it out with a new beam" sending neutrinos to the Gran Sassa underground lab, the CERN rep tells Reuters. While the initial observations caused an uproar, most scientists probably don't believe they're accurate, says a physics professor. "I don't think I met anyone who said I bet it's going to be true. I think the people on the experiment worked as carefully as they could and I think they ran out of ideas of what could be wrong and they decided to present it." (More Albert Einstein stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X