How Many Elementary Particles Are There, Really?

What this episode covers

How many pieces are there in the Standard Model of particle physics? 17, 30, 37, 61, 118? Or is the true answer much larger — and not even an integer? It depends on your taste for complexity — and mystery. On this episode of The Quanta Podcast, host Samir Patel and columnist Natalie Wolchover plummet down another rabbit hole, and this one goes down to the very building blocks of our reality. This topic was covered in a recent story for Quanta Magazine. Each week on The Quanta Podcast, Quanta Magazine editor in chief Samir Patel speaks with the people behind the award-winning publication to navigate through some of the most important and mind-expanding questions in science and math.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The Quanta Podcast?

This episode is 36 minutes long.

When was this The Quanta Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on June 23, 2026.

What is this episode about?

How many pieces are there in the Standard Model of particle physics? 17, 30, 37, 61, 118? Or is the true answer much larger — and not even an integer? It depends on your taste for complexity — and mystery. On this episode of The Quanta Podcast, host...

Can I download this The Quanta Podcast episode?

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