N=8 supergravity at five loops
Julio Parra Martinez (UCLA)
I explain efficient ways to extract the ultraviolet poles of scattering amplitudes in dimensional regularization. Similar methods can be applied to calculations of beta functions and anomalous dimensions, in the absence of subdivergences. As an example I describe the recent calculation of the ultraviolet properties of N=8 supergravity at five loops and analyze the implications of the result. Finally I argue that certain patterns might allow us to push on to higher loops and settle the longstanding question: “Does N=8 supergravity contain UV divergences in four dimensions?”