> weakly-interacting particles aren’t “something we’ve never seen before”, and in fact the neutrino is an excellent example of such a particle.
That's right. But the only reason we know about the neutrino is that it was predicted by theory.
> However the neutrino isn’t a candidate for the specific particle causing the observed effect because the distribution of observed effects on normal matter would look different, hence the search for more massive particles:
Correct again.
> a search that is very much at its early stages.
That depends on what you consider "early". There are only so many places in the standard model that wimps can be hiding, and the vast majority of them (if not all of them -- I haven't been keeping up with the latest developments) have been ruled out.
That's right. But the only reason we know about the neutrino is that it was predicted by theory.
> However the neutrino isn’t a candidate for the specific particle causing the observed effect because the distribution of observed effects on normal matter would look different, hence the search for more massive particles:
Correct again.
> a search that is very much at its early stages.
That depends on what you consider "early". There are only so many places in the standard model that wimps can be hiding, and the vast majority of them (if not all of them -- I haven't been keeping up with the latest developments) have been ruled out.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02741-3