Physics Colloquium: Extraordinary Claims: the 0.000029% Solution, or Anomalies in Collider Data

Abstract:

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. 48 years after its first invocation and 22 years after its first dutiful application, the five-sigma criterion used in HEP and astro-HEP does not appear adequate to cover all experimental situations.
The seminar will start with a short history of the five-sigma criterion, will then focus on a few anomalies found in HEP data and on their resolution, and then discuss the statistical problem of defining a proper discovery level for new phenomena and on the non-trivial issues it entails.

Event Organizer: Dr. Eran Sela