Intrinsic Asymmetry of the Universe: The Absolute Direction of Time, the Absolute Sign of Charge and the Absolute Handedness

Going back to the fundamental four physical forces that conform our universe, we review in this chapter the profound effect that the weak force, the only one able to discern between the handedness of a given system, has on it. Symmetry breaking, displayed by parity (P̂) violating interactions in particle physics, is restored through charge conjugation (Ĉ) in most cases. But the combined () symmetries are again also violated in the decay of some exotic particles, opening the prospect of time reversal violation (T̂). We analyze the origin of the unequal occurrence of matter and antimatter, as well as the arrow of space-time, which are ultimately a consequence of the weak force, as well as the evidence we have of the same through symmetry violation experiments in high-energy physics. The third component, the absolute handedness, is also manifested in these types of experiments, which historically started with the beta decay. However, in stable matter composed of stable particles, the potential effect of the weak force is much more limited, being circumscribed to vanishingly small weak currents mediated by the Z0 boson, operative in chiral molecules, but still to be proven experimentally.