Nobel’s particle problem

The National Post previews the events likely to make headlines in the week ahead.

HIGGS PlUS TWO

1 Most of the Nobel Prizes are awarded throughout the week, with Pakistani education activist Malala yousafzai a favourite for the Peace Prize on Friday. The safest bet, according to many bookies, is that Scottish theoretical physicist Peter Higgs is going to take the physics prize on Tuesday, now that the Higgs boson, the particle whose existence he predicted in the 1960s, has been discovered. The crucial idea, however, was in fact discovered three times by six people, of whom five are still alive, leaving the Nobel committee in an awkward spot. The most who can win a single Nobel is three.

NOVA SCOTIA

2 Polling puts the Liberal party, led by Stephen McNeil, on track to win Nova Scotia’s provincial election on Tuesday, and oust incumbent NDP Premier Darrell Dexter. Progressive Conservative leader Jamie Baillie has rallied support by criticizing Mr. Dexter’s track record of hefty loans to industry designed to save jobs. He has also promised a review of the Rehtaeh Parsons suicide case if his party wins.

EYES UP

3 Originating from the constellation Draco, the Dragon, the Draconids meteor shower will peak Monday night, and with a thin waxing moon, viewing conditions should be ideal right after nightfall in most parts of Canada. In the past, the annual shower has brought thousands of meteors per hour to the Earth’s atmosphere, where they burn up as shooting stars.

SECURITY AND JUSTICE

4 The Supreme Court of Canada will hear arguments Thursday about whether the government’s use of security certificates to bar suspected terrorists is a violation of constitutional rights. At issue is the imprisonment of Mohamed Harkat, an Algerian who was held on a security certificate alleging he was a terrorist sleeper agent. The security certificate regime, in which evidence is not disclosed to the subject, was previously upheld by the Federal Court of Appeal.

ART AWARD

5 The winner of the $50,000 Sobey Art Award is to be announced Wednesday at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. A panel of five curators from across Canada will pick from the shortlist, which includes work by Isabelle Pauwels (West Coast and yukon), Mark Clintberg (Prairies and the North), Duane Linklater (Ontario), Pascal Grandmaison (Quebec) and Tamara Henderson (Atlantic).