Approaches to Quantum Gravity: Toward a New Understanding of Space, Time and Matter PDF
Preview Approaches to Quantum Gravity: Toward a New Understanding of Space, Time and Matter
Approaches to Quantum Gravity By Daniele Oriti This page intentionally left blank APPROACHES TO QUANTUM GRAVITY TowardaNewUnderstandingofSpace,TimeandMatter The theory of quantum gravity promises a revolutionary new understanding of gravity and spacetime, valid from microscopic to cosmological distances. Researchinthisfieldinvolvesanexcitingblendofrigorousmathematicsandbold speculations,foundationalquestionsandtechnicalissues. Containing contributions from leading researchers in this field, this book presentsthefundamentalissuesinvolvedintheconstructionofaquantumtheoryof gravityandbuildingupaquantumpictureofspaceandtime.Itintroducesthemost current approaches to this problem, and reviews their main achievements. Each part ends in questions and answers, in which the contributors explore the merits andproblemsofthevariousapproaches.Thisbookprovidesacompleteoverview ofthisfieldfromthefrontiersoftheoreticalphysicsresearchforgraduatestudents andresearchers. DANIELE ORITI is a Researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics, Potsdam, Germany, working on non-perturbative quantum gravity. He has previously worked at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Canada; the Institute for Theoretical Physics at Utrecht University, The Netherlands; and the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, University of Cambridge, UK. He is well known for his results on spin foam models, and is among the leading researchers in the group field theory approach to quantum gravity. APPROACHES TO QUANTUM GRAVITY Toward a New Understanding of Space, Time and Matter Editedby DANIELE ORITI MaxPlanckInstituteforGravitationalPhysics, Potsdam,Germany CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521860451 © Cambridge University Press 2009 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provision of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published in print format 2009 ISBN-13 978-0-511-51640-5 eBook (EBL) ISBN-13 978-0-521-86045-1 hardback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of urls for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. ASandra Contents Listofcontributors pagex Preface xv PartI Fundamentalideasandgeneralformalisms 1 1 Unfinishedrevolution 3 C.Rovelli 2 Thefundamentalnatureofspaceandtime 13 G.’tHooft 3 Doeslocalityfailatintermediatelengthscales? 26 R.D.Sorkin 4 ProlegomenatoanyfutureQuantumGravity 44 J.Stachel 5 Spacetimesymmetriesinhistoriescanonicalgravity 68 N.Savvidou 6 Categoricalgeometryandthemathematical foundationsofQuantumGravity 84 L.Crane 7 Emergentrelativity 99 O.Dreyer 8 Asymptoticsafety 111 R.Percacci 9 NewdirectionsinbackgroundindependentQuantumGravity 129 F.Markopoulou Questionsandanswers 150 PartII String/M-theory 167 10 Gauge/gravityduality 169 G.HorowitzandJ.Polchinski vii viii Contents 11 Stringtheory,holographyandQuantumGravity 187 T.Banks 12 Stringfieldtheory 210 W.Taylor Questionsandanswers 229 PartIII Loopquantumgravityandspinfoammodels 233 13 Loopquantumgravity 235 T.Thiemann 14 Covariantloopquantumgravity? 253 E.Livine 15 Thespinfoamrepresentationofloopquantumgravity 272 A.Perez 16 Three-dimensionalspinfoamQuantumGravity 290 L.Freidel 17 ThegroupfieldtheoryapproachtoQuantumGravity 310 D.Oriti Questionsandanswers 332 PartIV DiscreteQuantumGravity 339 18 QuantumGravity:theartofbuildingspacetime 341 J.Ambjørn,J.JurkiewiczandR.Loll 19 QuantumReggecalculus 360 R.Williams 20 ConsistentdiscretizationsasaroadtoQuantumGravity 378 R.GambiniandJ.Pullin 21 ThecausalsetapproachtoQuantumGravity 393 J.Henson Questionsandanswers 414 PartV EffectivemodelsandQuantumGravityphenomenology 425 22 QuantumGravityphenomenology 427 G.Amelino-Camelia 23 QuantumGravityandprecisiontests 450 C.Burgess 24 AlgebraicapproachtoQuantumGravityII:noncommutative spacetime 466 S.Majid
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