Tufts/CfA/MIT Cosmology Seminar, at MIT:

Tuesday, September 30, 2008
2:30 pm
Cosman Seminar Room
Center for Theoretical Physics
Building 6C, Room 6C-442
Refreshments at 2:00, same location

"Gravity on the Largest Scales and Cosmic Acceleration"


Justin Khoury
Perimeter Institute

Abstract:

We present a class of modified theories of gravity in which vacuum energy can be screened or degravitated. We argue that any such theory must reduce at the linearized level to a theory of a massive or resonance graviton. The immediate implication is that there are new degrees of freedom, associated with the extra polarizations of the graviton. Phenomenologically, this results in a fifth force which is suppressed in regions of high density but becomes relevant on large (>Mpc) scales. We discuss the implications for cosmological evolution and structure formation.

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