I review the classical and quantum properties of the (2+ 1)-dimensional black hole of Bañados,
Teitelboim and Zanelli. This solution of the Einstein field equations in three spacetime …

The problem of reconciling general relativity and quantum theory has fascinated and
bedeviled physicists for more than 70 years. Despite recent progress in string theory and loop …

In three spacetime dimensions, general relativity becomes a topological field theory, whose
dynamics can be largely described holographically by a two-dimensional conformal field …

This timely volume provides a broad survey of (2+ 1)-dimensional quantum gravity. It emphasises
the'quantum cosmology'of closed universes and the quantum mechanics of the (2+ 1)-…

Many recent attempts to calculate black hole entropy from first principles rely on conformal
field theory techniques. By examining the logarithmic corrections to the Cardy formula, I …

Restricted to a black hole horizon, the “gauge” algebra of surface deformations in general
relativity contains a Virasoro subalgebra with a calculable central charge. The fields in any …

On a manifold with a boundary, the constraint algebra of general relativity may acquire a
central extension, which can be computed using covariant phase space techniques. When the …

The presence of a horizon breaks the gauge invariance of (2+ 1)-dimensional general relativity,
leading to the appearance of new physical states at the horizon. I show that the entropy …

In view of the enormous difficulties we seem to face in quantizing general relativity, we
should perhaps consider the possibility that gravity is a fundamentally classical interaction. …

With the recent discovery that many aspects of black hole thermodynamics can be effectively
reduced to problems in three spacetime dimensions, it has become increasingly important …