Is there a fifth force in Nature?

The standard model of particle physics recognizes the existence of four fundamental forces (their correct name is interactions):

• Gravitation: Newton called thus the force of attraction between any two masses at a distance. For Einstein, according to General Relativity, gravitation is the curvature of space as a consequence of the presence of a mass, which affects the movement of nearby masses. This force, which is always attractive, has an infinite range, although its effect decreases in inverse ratio of the square of the distance, and is the weakest of the four, but its effect is dominant at cosmic and planetary distances, as well as on the Earth's surface.

Can there be life without the weak interaction?

Beta and neutron decay

On January 30, 2018, the Science News magazine commented on an article recently published in arXiv which states that in a universe without the weak interaction, life would still be possible. When I read the Science News article, I immediately thought of an objection that could ruin both the thesis of the original article and its popularization. The first thing I did was looking up the original article, to see if my objection was mentioned or denied, but there was not a word about it. Next I detailed my objection in a comment in the web version of the Science News article, but so far no one has answered me. However, I think the objection is quite strong, and unless I am answered satisfactorily, in my opinion these articles are discredited.

According to the standard cosmological model and the standard model of particle physics, there are four fundamental interactions or forces in the universe: gravitation, electromagnetic interaction, and the strong and weak interactions, which regulate the work of atoms and elementary particles. In particular, the weak interaction affects all the elementary particles: leptons and hadrons, unlike the strong interaction, which affects only hadrons.