Recently released paper that hints to a fifth fundamental force https://astronomynow.com/2016/08/16/fifth-force-of-nature-could-be-key-to-understanding-dark-matter/
The UCI work demonstrates that instead of being a dark photon, the particle may be a “protophobic X boson.” While the normal electric force acts on electrons and protons, this newfound boson interacts only with electrons and neutrons — and at an extremely limited range. Analysis co-author Timothy Tait, professor of physics & astronomy, said, “There’s no other boson that we’ve observed that has this same characteristic. Sometimes we also just call it the ‘X boson,’ where ‘X’ means unknown.”
I'm trying to get a gauge on what this discovery (if true) would imply to our current understanding of particle physics and which discipline within physics would the impact be seen the most.
Also of interest, would this force be strong enough to have an effect on the standard GMm/r^2 formula (IE it would now be GMm/r^2 + newforce)?
