Related papers: "So what will you do if string theory is wrong?"
We argue that it is possible to address the deeper LHC Inverse Problem, to gain insight into the underlying theory from LHC signatures of new physics. We propose a technique which may allow us to distinguish among, and favor or disfavor,…
In this paper we discuss symmetry breaking in string theory. Spacetime symmetries are implemented as inner automorphisms of the underlying superconformal algebra. Conserved currents generate unbroken spacetime symmetries. As we deform the…
This is a talk given at YKIS '95, primarily to non-string theorists. I review the evidence for string duality, the principle that any string theory at strong coupling looks like another string theory at weak coupling. A postscript…
Using as a springboard a three-way debate between theoretical physicist Lee Smolin, philosopher of science Nancy Cartwright and myself, I address in layman's terms the issues of why we need a unified theory of the fundamental interactions…
In some string theories, e.g. SO(32) heterotic string theory on Calabi-Yau manifolds, a massless field with a tree level potential can acquire a tachyonic mass at the one loop level, forcing us to quantize the theory around a new background…
We attempt to review all trustworthy and well-controlled de Sitter compactifications of string theory.
It has been shown that there is a sequential embedding structure in a $w_N$\ string theory based on a linearized $W_N$\ algebra. The $w_N$\ string theory is obtained as a special realization of the $w_{N+1}$\ string. The $w_{\infty}$\…
We argue that \CP is a gauge symmetry in string theory. As a consequence, \CP cannot be explicitly broken either perturbatively or non-pertubatively; there can be no non-perturbative \CP-violating parameters. String theory is thus an…
A very brief review is given of some of the developments leading to our current understanding of black holes in string theory. This is followed by a discussion of two possible misconceptions in this subject - one involving the stability of…
This is a short account, based on a talk given at the 2024 Moriond Cosmology Conference, of where and why string theory matters in early universe cosmology. It is written for a cosmology audience predisposed to be at best sceptical, and at…
Using the string field theory recently proposed by the authors and collaborators, we give a background independent formulation of rational noncritical string theories with $c\leq 1$. With a little modification of the string field…
Over the last few years, string theory has changed profoundly. Most importantly, novel duality relations have emerged which involve gauge theories of brane excitations on one side and various closed string backgrounds on the other. In this…
One of the perspectives in modern quantum field and string theory is related with the attempts to go beyond the perturbation theory. It turns out that a key principle in the formulation of all known non-perturbative results is {\it…
String (membrane) theory could be considered as degenerate case of relativistic continuous media theory. The paper presents models of media, which are continuous distributions of interacting membranes, strings or particles.
In this talk we discuss the cosmic singularity. We motivate the need to correct general relativity in the study of singularities, and mention the kind of corrections provided by string theory. We review how string theory resolves time-like…
The main aim of this paper is to make a remark about the relation between (i) dualities between theories, as `duality' is understood in physics and (ii) equivalence of theories, as `equivalence' is understood in logic and philosophy. The…
We argue that the light particles in string theory obey an effective quantum mechanics modified by the inclusion of a quantum-gravitational friction term, induced by unavoidable couplings to unobserved massive string states in the…
A general prediction of string unification is the existence of exotic states with fractional charges under the free unbroken Abelian generators of the underlying GUT symmetry. Such states may be long-lived due to the existence of weakly…
Practically measurable quantities resulting from quantum field theory are not described by hermitian operators, contradicting one of the cornerstone axioms of orthodox quantum theory. This could be a sign that some of the axioms of orthodox…
String configurations have been identified in compactified Matrix theory at vanishing string coupling. We show how the interactions of these strings are determined by the Yang-Mills gauge field on the worldsheet. At finite string coupling,…