Gravity, particle physics and their unification

Abstract

We explain the need for a theory of quantum gravity and some general ideas about string theory, including the idea of the derivation of the Hawking Bekenstein entropy formula for extremal black holes. We then give a general description of the correspondence between the large N limit of certain gauge theories and string theory on spacetimes with boundaries.

Comments: latex, 8 figures. Talk at Lepton-Photon 99. Talk for non-string-theorists