It depends on why I want to re-prove it. If I’m transported in a time machine back to, say, 1905, and want to demonstrate the existence of the atomic nucleus, then sure, I know how to run Rutherford’s experiment, and I think I could derive enough basic scattering theory to demonstrate that the result isn’t compatible with the mass being spread out through the whole atom. Even if I forgot that the nucleus exists, but remembered that the question of the mass distribution internal to an atom is an interesting one, the same applies. But to re-derive that the question is interesting, that would be tough. I think similar comments apply to most of the Standard Model: I am more or less aware of the basic experiments that demonstrated the existence of the quarks and whatnot, although in some cases the engineering would be a much bigger challenge than Rutherford’s tabletop setup. Getting the math would be much harder; I don’t think I have enough mathematical intuition to rederive quantum field theory. In fact I haven’t thought about renormalisation since I forgot all about it after the exam, so absent gods forbid I should have to shake the infinities out. I think my role would be to describe and run the experiments, and let the theorists come up with the math.
It depends on why I want to re-prove it. If I’m transported in a time machine back to, say, 1905, and want to demonstrate the existence of the atomic nucleus, then sure, I know how to run Rutherford’s experiment, and I think I could derive enough basic scattering theory to demonstrate that the result isn’t compatible with the mass being spread out through the whole atom. Even if I forgot that the nucleus exists, but remembered that the question of the mass distribution internal to an atom is an interesting one, the same applies. But to re-derive that the question is interesting, that would be tough. I think similar comments apply to most of the Standard Model: I am more or less aware of the basic experiments that demonstrated the existence of the quarks and whatnot, although in some cases the engineering would be a much bigger challenge than Rutherford’s tabletop setup. Getting the math would be much harder; I don’t think I have enough mathematical intuition to rederive quantum field theory. In fact I haven’t thought about renormalisation since I forgot all about it after the exam, so absent gods forbid I should have to shake the infinities out. I think my role would be to describe and run the experiments, and let the theorists come up with the math.