Unlike an electron or photon, a quark has never been detected as a “free” particle (a localized quantum of charge or energy) — that is, äs an isolated fractional charge. The quark model, however, has been well-established in particle physics for 20 years: recall the recent announcement of experimental evidence for the top quark. In what follows, I shall discuss how the current evidence for quarks fits in with the generalized concept of observation, which was proposed bv D. Shapere in 1982.
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Falkenburg, B. (2000). How to Observe Quarks. In: Agazzi, E., Pauri, M. (eds) The Reality of the Unobservable. Boston Studies in the Philosophy of Science, vol 215. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9391-5_25
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-9391-5_25
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