Near the end of 2007 the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, is scheduled to turn on and produce proton-proton collisions at unprecendented energies. The highly anticipated physics that will result is expected to uncover many discoveries and change the way we think about the Universe. One of the mysteries that is expected to be solved by the LHC is how mass is generated in the Universe (and how the electroweak symmetry is broken). Within the Standard Model of particle physics this is achieved through the Higgs mechanism, a manifestation of which is a particle called the Higgs boson. Searches for the Higgs boson are therefore of paramount importance in particle physics. I will review our current understanding of electroweak symmetry breaking from the Tevatron experiments at Fermilab, and discuss prospects at the LHC.
Coffee and cookies before the presentation at 3:20 pm, and refreshments after the presentation will both be served in Room 128.