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. The charges of the proton (governed by the strong force) and the electron (governed by the
electromagnetic) cancel exactly, hinting that there might be some symmetry there.
. The coupling constants for the strong, weak and electromagnetic forces, which change as a
function of energy, almost meet at one single, high-energy point if you extrapolate to
higher energies.
. And the additional physics that this unification brings along with it allows potential solutions
to problems like why neutrinos have small-but-nonzero masses and why the Universe
has a matter-antimatter asymmetry.
An asymmetry between the bosons and anti-bosons common to grand unified theories like
SU(5) unification could give rise to a fundamental asymmetry between matter and antimatter,
similar to what we observe in our Universe. Image credit: E. Siegel.
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The water-filled tank at Super Kamiokande, which has set the most stringent limits on the
lifetime of the proton. Image credit: Kamioka Observatory, ICRR (Institute for Cosmic Ray
Research), The University of Tokyo.