Abstract
A key step towards an understanding of nature is understanding what can be inferred from empirically acquired information. In that context, this essay critically analyzes last years claim that a new boson has been observed with the CMS experiment at the LHC - a claim that was followed up on in 2013 with the announcement that the newly observed particle is indeed a Higgs boson. It is argued that it is neither the case that the new boson has been observed directly, nor that the contended claim can be deduced from the research result. The response of the CMS collaboration to this criticism is presented, and countered with a final argument. The conclusion is then that the claim that the boson has been observed is an overstatement, and thus concerns rhetoric outside the framework of scientific discourse.
Marcoen J.T.F. Cabbolet