Archive of IAS Physics Group Meetings

Abstract: I will compare the gravitational sectors of two 10d heterotic string theories, with E8 x E8 and Spin(32)/$Z_2$ gauge groups, and show that they differ by a subtle $Z_3$-valued topological term. I also discuss its relation to the...

Abstract: Pulsar timing arrays (PTAs) consist of a set of regularly monitored millisecond pulsars with extremely stable rotational periods. The arrival time of pulses can be altered by the passage of gravitational waves (GWs) between them and the...

Abstract: In spite of tremendous progress in mean-field spin glass theory over the last forty years, “realistic” spin glass models with short-range interactions remain shrouded in mystery. I will talk about recent progress on this topic, proving a...

Abstract: We study the partition function of 3D de Sitter gravity defined as the trace over the Hilbert space obtained by quantizing Schwarzschild-de Sitter spacetime. Motivated by the correspondence with double scaled SYK, we identify the...

Abstract: As well known, mesons with large spin J in large NcQCD can be described as rotating open strings using effective field theory (EFT). However, some subtleties arise for light quarks, due to the breakdown of the derivative expansion near the...

Abstract: I will begin by reviewing gauge/string duality, and in particular the motivations for understanding this duality better in the case of weakly coupled gauge theories. I will then discuss work in progress on two approaches to understanding...

Abstract: Recently, I have been trying to understand how large language models (LLMs) work, what their basic building blocks are and how they are trained. In this talk I want to share some of my understanding with you by discussing the so-called...