Related papers: Barriers in Quantum Gravity
We study quantum gravity in more than four dimensions by means of an exact functional flow. A non-trivial ultraviolet fixed point is found in the Einstein-Hilbert theory. It is shown that our results for the fixed point and universal…
A novel theory of Quantum Gravity is presented in which the real gravitons manifest themselves as holes in space. In general, these holes propagate at the speed of light through an expanding universe with boundary denoted by U, which is…
Some of the recent developments in the theory of random surfaces and simplicial quantum gravity is reviewed. For 2d quantum gravity this includes the failure of Regge calculus, our improved understanding of the $c>1$ regime, some surprises…
In this talk I review a series of recent conceptual developments at the interface of the quantum and gravitational realms. Wherever possible, I comment on the possibility to probe the interface experimentally. It is concluded that the…
We develop a worldline approach to quantum gravity in D=4. Using the background field method we consider the covariantly gauge fixed Einstein-Hilbert action with cosmological constant, and find a worldline representation of the differential…
At the beginning of the previous century, Newtonian mechanics fell victim to two new revolutionary theories, Quantum Mechanics (QM) and General Relativity (GR). Both theories have transformed our view of physical phenomena, with QM…
In seeking to arrive at a theory of ``quantum gravity'', one faces several choices among alternative approaches. I list some of these ``forks in the road'' and offer reasons for taking one alternative over the other. In particular, I…
We discuss entropy bounds for a class of two-dimensional gravity models. While the Bekenstein bound can be proved to hold in general for weakly gravitating matter, the analogous of the holographic bound is not universal, but depends on the…
Contemporary research programs in fundamental physics appear to suggest that there could be two (physical) times---or none at all. This essay articulates these possibilities in the context of quantum gravity, and in particular of…
After a brief review of current scenarios for the resolution and/or avoidance of the Big Bang, an alternative hypothesis is put forward implying an infinite increase in complexity towards the initial singularity. This may result in an…
We review different approaches to quantum gravity in which spacetime is emerging. We discuss in some detail the proposals by G. Volovik and S. Lloyd and show how they differ in the way they treat time. We further propose an approach to…
Quadratic gravity presents us with a renormalizable, asymptotically free theory of quantum gravity. When its couplings grow strong at some scale, as in QCD, then this strong scale sets the Planck mass. QCD has a gluon that does not appear…
The possible interpretations of a new continuum model for the two-dimensional quantum gravity for $d>1$ ($d$=matter central charge), obtained by carefully treating both diffeomorphism and Weyl symmetries, are discussed. In particular we…
We propose a method for demonstrating equivalences beyond the saddlepoint approximation between quantities in quantum gravity that are defined by the Euclidean path integral, without assumptions about holographic duality. The method…
We show that perturbative quantum gravity based on the Einstein-Hilbert action, has a novel continuum limit. The renormalized trajectory emanates from the Gaussian fixed point along (marginally) relevant directions but enters the…
Combining gravity with quantum theory is still work in progress. On the one hand, classical gravity, is the geometry of space-time determined by the energy-momentum tensor of matter and the resulting nonlinear equations; on the other hand,…
Invariance principles determine many key properties in quantum field theory, including, in particular, the appropriate form of the boundary conditions. A crucial consistency check is the proof that the resulting boundary-value problem is…
General relativity in three spacetime dimensions is used to explore three approaches to the ``problem of time'' in quantum gravity: the internal Schr\"odinger approach with mean extrinsic curvature as a time variable, the Wheeler-DeWitt…
Quantum gravity is studied nonperturbatively in the case in which space has a boundary with finite area. A natural set of boundary conditions is studied in the Euclidean signature theory, in which the pullback of the curvature to the…
We comment on the recently introduced Gauss-Bonnet gravity in four dimensions. We argue that it does not make sense to consider this theory to be defined by a set of $D\to 4$ solutions of the higher-dimensional Gauss-Bonnet gravity. We show…