What Are Physical Symmetries and How Do Particles Transform?

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Physical symmetries refer to the invariance of objects under certain transformations, such as rotations and reflections, which can be observed in geometric shapes like spheres, cylinders, and cones. In the context of the universe, it is believed that shortly after the Big Bang, all four fundamental forces—electromagnetism, weak and strong nuclear forces, and gravity—were unified and indistinguishable. This symmetry is thought to have been spontaneously broken within a billionth of a second, leading to the distinct forces and particles we observe today. The quest for a Grand Unified Theory (GUT) aims to explain these symmetries and their breaking, but no viable theories currently exist. The discussion highlights the complexity of understanding particle transformations, as particles like Z bosons, electrons, and photons are fundamentally different entities.
werner heisenberg
Can somedody explain me in a relatively plain languaje what are physical simetries
 
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werner Heisenberg said:
Can somedody explain me in a relatively plain languaje what are physical simetries
in what sense please? Here are some simple degrees of rotational and mirror symmetries for solid geometric objects:

A sphere is symmetrical in all rotations and mirror-images. It looks the same in any aspect.
A cylinder is symmetrical when rotated about its central axis, and is mirrror-symmetrical when its central axis is flipped 180 degrees.
A cone is symmetrical when rotated about its central axis, but does not possesses mirror symmetry when that axis is flipped 180 degrees - the apex is now on the "wrong" end.

If you're looking for explanations of symmetries that ought to exist for our Universe to have been able to arise from "nothing", that's a huge project.
 
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When I refer to physical simetries I'm talking about all that stuff saying that at some moment in the past (in fact a little fraction of a second after the big explosion) the 4 forces (electromagnetism, the weak and strong and gravity) were the same. The particles involving the forces were the same and the fields too. Sorry if I'm not too rigurous in my exposition but the main problem is that I do not understand it
 
werner Heisenberg said:
When I refer to physical simetries I'm talking about all that stuff saying that at some moment in the past (in fact a little fraction of a second after the big explosion) the 4 forces (electromagnetism, the weak and strong and gravity) were the same. The particles involving the forces were the same and the fields too. Sorry if I'm not too rigurous in my exposition but the main problem is that I do not understand it
Nobody understands it. That symmetry (believed to exist by BB theorists before one Planck time) represents an unknown singularity. In this cosmology, all symmetries were spontaneously broken in about a billionth of a second.
 
werner Heisenberg said:
When I refer to physical simetries I'm talking about all that stuff saying that at some moment in the past (in fact a little fraction of a second after the big explosion) the 4 forces (electromagnetism, the weak and strong and gravity) were the same. The particles involving the forces were the same and the fields too. Sorry if I'm not too rigurous in my exposition but the main problem is that I do not understand it
The answer to include all forces will require an understanding, or reasonable theory of the "Grand Unified Theory" (GUT), but none are workable as of this date last I heard.

See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_force
where part states that:
Currently, there is no accepted candidate for a theory of quantum gravity. The search for an acceptable theory of quantum gravity, and a quantum mechanical grand unified theory, are important areas of current physics research. Until such a search is successful, the gravitational interaction cannot be considered as a force because it is of a geometrical rather than dynamical nature
(My Italics)

Also see the whole page at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_unified_theory where it is mentioned several times.
 
thanks, I will take a look at this page and try to understand something
 
But how can a particle turn to another. I can't conceive a Z particle turning into an electron or a photon. they are just not the same and I suposed that they have always benn different
 
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