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We discuss gauge theories of scale invariance beyond the Standard Model (SM) and Einstein gravity. A consequence of gauging this symmetry is that their underlying 4D geometry is non-metric ($\nabla_\mu g_{\alpha\beta}\not=0$). Examples of…
This is the write-up of a talk given at the EW session in Moriond (March 2012). I summarize some non-standard electroweak scenarios, and how they predict the existence of new spin-two resonances. Spin-two resonances, whether coming from the…
We investigate a model that modifies general relativity on cosmological scales, specifically by having a `glitch' in the gravitational constant between the cosmological (super-horizon) and Newtonian (sub-horizon) regimes, as motivated e.g.…
If scale invariance is a classical symmetry then both the Planck scale and the weak scale should emerge as quantum effects. We show that this can be realized in simple scale invariant theories with a hidden sector. The weak/Planck scale…
We propose the relation $M_\Lambda \sim (M_{Pl} M_U)^{1/2}$ where $M_\Lambda$, $M_{Pl},$ and $M_U$ denote the mass scale associated with the cosmological constant, the gravitational interaction, and the size of the universe respectively.
Studying the spectrum of (pure) $R^2$ gravity on Minkowski background inevitably results into a Catch-22: any consistent interpretation of its particle dynamics dictates that no accidental gauge symmetries emerge, a requirement that cannot…
We introduce Weyl's scale invariance as an additional local symmetry in the standard model of electroweak interactions. An inevitable consequence is the introduction of general relativity coupled to scalar fields a la Dirac and an…
I give a short non-technical review of the results obtained in recent work on "Doubly Special Relativity", the relativistic theories in which the rotation/boost transformations between inertial observers are characterized by two…
One regime where we might see departures from general relativity is at the largest accessible scales, with a natural choice in cosmology being the cosmological horizon (or Hubble) scale. We investigate a single-parameter extension to the…
A rare coincidence of scales in standard particle physics is needed to explain why $\Lambda$ or the negative pressure of cosmological dark energy (DE) coincides with the positive pressure $P_0$ of random motion of dark matter (DM) in bright…
A recently introduced model of dually weighted planar graphs is solved in terms of an elliptic parametrization for some particular collection of planar graphs describing the 2D $R^2$ quantum gravity. Along with the cosmological constant…
We propose a model of cosmology and particle physics in which all relevant scales arise in a natural way from an intermediate string scale. We are led to assign the string scale to the intermediate scale M_* \sim 10^{13} GeV by four…
In the framework of asymptotic safety, we study quantum quadratic gravity in the presence of the Higgs field considered as non-separable from the vacuum. The theory flows to a high energy fixed point where the Higgs field is strongly…
We have recently proposed a new action principle for combining Einstein equations and the Dirac equation for a point mass. We used a length scale $L_{CS}$, dubbed the Compton-Schwarzschild length, to which the Compton wavelength and…
We study the induced 4-dimensional linearized Einstein field equations in an m-dimensional bulk space by means of a confining potential. It is shown that in this approach the mass of graviton is quantized. The cosmological constant problem…
In absence of matter Einstein gravity with a cosmological constant $\La$ can be formulated as a scale-free theory depending only on the dimensionless coupling constant G \Lambda where G is Newton constant. We derive the conformal field…
Free massless scalars have a shift symmetry. This is usually broken by gauge and Yukawa interactions, such that quantum corrections induce a quadratically divergent mass term. In the Standard Model this leads to the hierarchy problem of the…
The gravitational dynamics and cosmological implications of three classes of recently introduced multi-scale spacetimes (with, respectively, ordinary, weighted and q-derivatives) are discussed. These spacetimes are non-Riemannian: the…
The principles of quantum field theory in flat spacetime suggest that gravity is mediated by a massless particle with helicity $\pm2$, the so-called graviton. It is regarded as textbook knowledge that, when the self-coupling of a particle…
Electroweak symmetry can be naturally broken by observed quark and gauge fields in various extra-dimensional configurations. No new {\it fundamental} fields are required below the quantum gravitational scale ($\sim$ 10 - 100 TeV). We…