QCD, supersymmetric QCD, lattice QCD and string theory: Synthesis on the horizon?

Abstract

Supersymmetric gauge theories in four dimensions have taught us many important physics lessons. These can both inform and be informed by future work on the lattice. I focus on three issues: the properties of supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory and its relation to the non-supersymmetric case; the properties of gauge theories with matter and their relation to real QCD; and, briefly, the recent discovery that gauge theories and string theories are more deeply connected than ever previously realized. Specific questions for lattice gauge theorists to consider are raised in the context of the first two topics.