Question on D=26 --- String Theory versus Quantum Gravity ---

الأصل · EN

In the covariant-gauge two-dimensional quantum gravity, various derivations of the critical dimension D=26 of the bosonic string are critically reviewed, and their interrelations are clarified. It is shown that the string theory is not identical with the proper framework of the two-dimensional quantum gravity, but the former should be regarded as a particular aspect of the latter. The appearance of various anomalies is shown to be explainable in terms of a new type of anomaly in a unified way.