24 Toward a Final Theory of Everything

TOWARD A FINAL THEORY OF EVERYTHING The standard model and Einsteins theory of general relativity are still our best candi dates of unified theories. But there are other phenomena that are not yet explained, and there are attempts to extend our theories with newer ideas, such as supersymmetry, extra dimensions, and quark and lepton compositeness. So, how exactly do we take the next step How likely it is that we will make progress in the future, and where is progress most likely to be made more pragmatically, what techniques will we use to try These are the core questions for this lecture.