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What’s the smallest thing in the universe? - Jonathan Butterworth

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TEDEd Animation

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If you were to take a coffee cup, and break it in half, then in half again, and keep carrying on, where would you end up? Could you keep on going forever? Or would you eventually find a set of indivisible building blocks out of which everything is made? Jonathan Butterworth explains the Standard Model theory and how it helps us understand the world we live in.

We need huge particle accelerators to study the smallest particles. Why do these experiments need to be so big? What reasons can you think of? What ways other than particle accelerators might be used to study elementary particles?

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TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Jonathan Butterworth
  • Director Nick Hilditch
  • Narrator Addison Anderson
  • Animator Nick Hilditch
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Associate Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Fact-Checker Brian Gutierrez

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