2012/01/04 by Schwarz, John H.
#FOS: Physical sciences #High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th) #History and Philosophy of Physics (physics.hist-ph)
paper · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1201.0981
This lecture presents a brief overview of the early history of string theory and supersymmetry. It describes how the S-matrix theory program for understanding the strong nuclear force evolved into superstring theory, which is a promising framework for constructing a unified quantum theory of all forces including gravity. The period covered begins with S-matrix theory in the mid 1960s and ends with the widespread acceptance of superstring theory in the mid 1980s. Further details and additional references can be found in Schwarz (2007).