Dark matter candidates arise frequently in theories that suggest physics beyond the Standard Model, such as supersymmetry and extra dimensions. However, they would carry away energy and momentum, so physicists could infer their existence from the amount of energy and momentum “missing” after a collision. If they were created at the LHC, they would escape through the detectors unnoticed. Many theories say the dark matter particles would be light enough to be produced at the LHC. Experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) may provide more direct clues about dark matter.

Here's a sobering fact: The matter we know and that makes up all stars and galaxies only accounts for 5% of the content of the universe! But what is dark matter? One idea is that it could contain 'supersymmetric particles' – hypothesized particles that are partners to those already known in the Standard Model. Dark matter seems to outweigh visible matter roughly six to one, making up about 27% of the universe. In fact, researchers have been able to infer the existence of dark matter only from the gravitational effect it seems to have on visible matter. This means it does not absorb, reflect or emit light, making it extremely hard to spot. Unlike normal matter, dark matter does not interact with the electromagnetic force. This strange and unknown matter was called “dark matter” since it is not visible. They think something we have yet to detect directly is giving these galaxies extra mass, generating the extra gravity they need to stay intact. The same is true of galaxies in clusters, which leads scientists to believe that something we cannot see is at work. They are rotating with such speed that the gravity generated by their observable matter could not possibly hold them together they should have torn themselves apart long ago. Fans of Angela Carter and Shirley Jackson take note' i Newspaper.Galaxies in our universe seem to be achieving an impossible feat. All will burrow their way into your brain and not let go' Stylist. These dark tales explore women's fears with electrifying honesty and invention and speak to one another about female bodies, domestic claustrophobia, desire and violence. Couples wrestle with a lack of connection to their children a schoolgirl becomes obsessed with the female anatomical models in a museum and a cheery account of child's day out is undercut by chilling footnotes. Alone in a remote house in Iceland a woman is unnerved by her isolation another can only find respite from the clinging ghost that follows her by submerging herself in an overgrown pool. A shocking collection of dark stories, ranging from chilling contemporary fairytales to disturbing supernatural fiction. 'You won't put it down' Sunday Telegraph.

Things we say in the dark