The results of the experiments at the LHC from this summer that proved empirical evidence of the existence of the Higgs Boson has finally been published.
You can view these here and here.
Here’s an excerpt:
These results provide conclusive evidence for the discovery of a new particle with mass. The signal strength parameter ? has the value 1.4±0.3 at the fitted mass, which is consistent with the SM Higgs boson hypothesis ?=1. The decays to pairs of vector bosons whose net electric charge is zero identify the new particle as a neutral boson.
Before this discovery didn’t know what gave particles mass. We now know a kind of particle, neutral boson (or Higgs Boson after Peter Higgs) does this. So this discovery explains a bit more of the standard model of physics. They need to do some more research to find out if other kinds of Higgs Boson’s exist and if they can, a whole new range of discoveries in particle physics are on the horizon.. like proving supersymmetry maybe.
Exciting times for these physicists!