Part 4/14:
From Particles to the Cosmos: Exploring the Standard Model
The Building Blocks of Reality
To understand this cosmic fragility, we need to explore the standard model of particle physics—the framework describing the fundamental particles and forces. Everything—from quarks and leptons (like electrons) to force-carrying particles called bosons (including photons and gluons)—are quantum fields. These fields permeate all space, with particles manifesting as ripples or excitations within them.