We discuss a few examples in 2+1 dimensions and 1+1 dimensions supporting a recent conjecture concerning the relation between the Planck scale and the coupling strength of a non-gravitional interaction, unlike those examples in 3+1 dimensions, we do not have to resort to exotic physics such as small black holes. However, the result concerning these low dimensional examples is a direct consequence of the 3+1 dimensional conjecture.

The action of a Lie pseudogroup $\mathcal{G}$ on a smooth manifold$M$induces a prolonged pseudogroup action on the jet spaces$J$^{$n$}of submanifolds of$M$. We prove in this paper that both the local and global freeness of the action of $\mathcal{G}$ on$J$^{$n$}persist under prolongation in the jet order$n$. Our results underlie the construction of complete moving frames and, indirectly, their applications in the identification and analysis of the various invariant objects for the prolonged pseudogroup actions.

Based on earlier work of the latter two named authors on the higher super-Teichmueller space with N=1, a component of the flat OSp(1\2) connections on a punctured surface, here we extend to the case N=2 of flat OSp(2\2) connections. Indeed, we construct here coordinates on the higher super-Teichmueller space of a surface F with at least one puncture associated to the supergroup OSp(2\2), which in particular specializes to give another treatment for N=1 simpler than the earlier work. The Minkowski space in the current case, where the corresponding super Fuchsian groups act, is replaced by the superspace R2,2\4, and the familiar lambda lengths are extended by odd invariants of triples of special isotropic vectors in R2,2\4 as well as extra bosonic parameters, which we call ratios, defining a flat R+-connection on F. As in the pure bosonic or N=1 cases, we derive the analogue of Ptolemy transformations for all these new variables.

In this article, we study the small sphere limit of the Wang-Yau quasi-local energy defined in [18,19]. Given a point p in a spacetime N , we consider a canonical family of surfaces approaching p along its future null cone and evaluate the limit of the Wang-Yau quasi-local energy. The evaluation relies on solving an "optimal embedding equation" whose solutions represent critical points of the quasi-local energy. For a spacetime with matter fields, the scenario is similar to that of the large sphere limit found in [7]. Namely, there is a natural solution which is a local minimum, and the limit of its quasi-local energy recovers the stress-energy tensor at p . For a vacuum spacetime, the quasi-local energy vanishes to higher order and the solution of the optimal embedding equation is more complicated. Nevertheless, we are able to show that there exists a solution which is a local minimum and that the limit of its quasi-local energy is related to the Bel-Robinson tensor. Together with earlier work [7], this completes the consistency verification of the Wang-Yau quasi-local energy with all classical limits.

In this paper we study the quantum sheaf cohomology of Grassmannians with deformations of the tangent bundle. Quantum sheaf cohomology is a (0,2) deformation of the ordinary quantum cohomology ring, realized as the OPE ring in A/2-twisted theories. Quantum sheaf cohomology has previously been computed for abelian gauged linear sigma models (GLSMs); here, we study (0,2) deformations of nonabelian GLSMs, for which previous methods have been intractable. Combined with the classical result, the quantum ring structure is derived from the one-loop effective potential. We also utilize recent advances in supersymmetric localization to compute A/2 correlation functions and check the general result in examples. In this paper we focus on physics derivations and examples; in a companion paper, we will provide a mathematically rigorous derivation of the classical sheaf cohomology ring.