The constraints on the signal are:

  decays into 2 photons, so must be a boson, integer spin, probably 0, 1 or 2
  both signals are 45Gev wide and look like the Higgs signal.
  ATLAS has a 1.6TeV bump at 2.5 Sigma, potentially a resonance.
  ATLAS has 747 GeV at 3.6 Sigma, CMS 766 GeV at 2.6 Sigma - combines to 4 Sigma although the Look Elsewhere Effect is disputed.
  ATLAS run1 at 8TeV did not see the signal.
  ATLAS has a 2.2 sigma for the 2 TeV excess that CMS saw in Run1, potentially indicating the 750GeV is a composite particle.

4 Sigma diPhoton excesses have turned out to be random fluctuations before.

http://resonaances.blogspot.fr/2015/12/a-new-boson-at-750-ge...

http://motls.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/first-batch-of-9-pheno-p...

http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/?p=8174

> integer spin, probably 0, 1 or 2

So really 0 or 1. If it had spin 2 that would make it a graviton, which seems... unlikely, to say the least.

This article: http://motls.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/first-batch-of-9-pheno-p... also mentions that spin 1 is disallowed by the Landau-Yang Theorem. So it's most likely spin 0.

It seems this theorem only applies to massive spin 1 particles, though: https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/38427/proof-of-y...

I wouldn't call it "content-free," since it gives arguments for why it can't be a heavier version of the Higgs, describes multiple hypotheses that will be tested, as well as a timeframe for testing them.

Or it could be literally nothing at all because the signal isn't strong enough to conclude anything is actually there to begin with. Which at this point is pretty likely, especially for any hypothesis that doesn't fit with the standard model.

The coverage of this has been absurdly breathless given the nature of the "result". The bandwagon jumping (or as the author themselves so elegantly put it, ambulance chasing) is truly something to behold...

You should take up Luboš Motl on his bet: http://motls.blogspot.lu/2015/12/a-new-750-gev-boson-is-very...

I have been excited about the bump, even if later the bump turns out to be false. I wanted to make sure people have a chance to follow the story unfolding if they didn't know about it. I also appreciate the thought exercises surrounding the bump as I'm not scientifically literate enough to do them myself.