Quantum Theory Of Gravity Essays In Honor Of The 60th Birthday Of Bryce C Dewitt

The 33 essays in this volume together provide a valuable overview of the progress towards a theory of quantum gravity, and offer succinct treatment of: quantum field theory in curved space-times, supergravity, cosmology, black holes, quantum geometry, supersymmetry and related phenomena.

1946 is the year Bryce DeWitt entered Harvard graduate school. Quantum Gravity was his goal and remained his goal throughout his lifetime until the very end. The pursuit of Quantum Gravity requires a profound understanding of Quantum Physics and Gravitation Physics. As G. A. Vilkovisky commented , "Quantum Gravity is a combination of two words, and one should know both. Bryce understood this as nobody else, and this wisdom is completely unknown to many authors of the flux of papers that we see nowadays." Distingished physicist Cecile DeWitt-Morette skillfully blends her personal and scientific account with a wealth of her late husband's often unpublished writings on the subject matter. This volume, through the perspective of the leading researcher on quantum gravity of his generation, will provide an invaluable source of reference for anyone working in the field.

Containing contributions from leading researchers in this field, this book provides a complete overview of this field from the frontiers of theoretical physics research for graduate students and researchers. It introduces the most current approaches to this problem, and reviews their main achievements.

Introducing the reader to the very latest developments in the philosophical foundations of physics, this book covers advanced material at a level suitable for beginner and intermediate students. A detailed overview is provided of the central debates in the philosophy of quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics, quantum computation, and quantum gravity. Each chapter consists of a 'state of the art' review written by a specialist in the field and introduces the reader to the relevant formal aspects along with the philosophical implications. These, and the various interpretive options, are developed in a self-contained, clear, and concise manner. Special care is given to situating the reader within the contemporary debates by providing numerous references and readings. This book thus enables both philosophers and physicists to engage with the most pressing problems in contemporary philosophy of physics in a fruitful way.

Eight carefully written articles on the interactions between the ideas and concepts of particle physics and those of astrophysics make up this book. Two long introductory lectures give a survey of modern concepts in particle physics and in astrophysics and cosmology, stressing features of common interest. The other six contributions deal with the physics of supernova explosions, with black holes, with neutrino oscillations, with the importance of phase transitions for the large-scale structure of the Universe, and with the use of the ideas of quantum gravity for computer simulations. These rather detailed review articles will be of value for many years to come. The book is intended for graduate students and researchers both in particle physics and in astrophysics.

The Salamfest was held to honor Prof Abdus Salam whose scientific contribution to the development and dissemination of physics has deeply influenced the course of scientific advancement. Colleagues, collaborators and former students met together to celebrate his scientific achievements, and discuss the highlights of recent advances in experiment and phenomenology in particle and condensed matter physics.The Contributors are: A Ali, G Altarelli, L Alvarez-Gaumé, D Amati, J Bahcall, A Chamseddine, R Delbourgo, M Duff, J Ellis, J Feltesse, P Frampton, M Green, G 't Hooft, T Kibble, G Mack, Y Ne'eman, L O'Raifeartaigh, J Pati, R Peccei, S Randjbar-Daemi, Riazuddin & Fayyazuddin, D Schramm, H Schröder, D Sciama, E Sezgin, Q Shafi, C Vafa, S Weinberg, P West, B Winstein, E Witten, C N Yang, A Zichichi and B Zumino.

Quantum theory is at the foundation of the physical description of our world. One of the people who contributed significantly to our conceptual understanding of this theory was Heinz-Dieter Zeh (1932-2018). He was the pioneer of the process of decoherence, through which the classical appearance of our world can be understood. This volume presents a collection of essays dedicated to his memory, written by distinguished scientists and scholars. They cover all aspects of the interpretation of quantum theory in general and the quantum-to-classical transition in particular. This volume provides illuminating reading to anyone seeking a deep understanding of quantum theory and its relevance to the foundations of physics.

Quantum mechanics and quantum field theory on one hand and Gravity as a theory of curved space-time on the other are the two great conc- tual schemes of modern theoretical physics. For many decades they have lived peacefully together for a simple reason: it was a coexistence wi- out much interaction. There has been the family of relativists and the other family of elementary particle physicists and both sides have been convinced that their problems have not very much to do with the problems of the respective other side. This was a situation which could not last forever, because the two theoretical schemes have a particular structural trait in common: their claim for totality and universality. Namely on one hand all physical theories have to be formulated in a quantum mechanical manner, and on the other hand gravity as curved space-time influences all processes and vice versa. It was therefore only a question of time that physically relevant domains of application would attract a general int- est, which demand a combined application of both theoretical schemes. But it is immediately obvious that such an application of both schemes is - possible if the schemes are taken as they are. Something new is needed which reconciles gravity and quantum mechanics. During the last two de- des we are now doing the first steps towards this more general theory and we are confronted with fundamental difficulties.