Lattice quantum chromodynamics comes of age

The strength of the electron-photon interaction is characterized by the fine-structure constant α ≈ 1/137.036. Because α is small, quantum electrodynamics (QED), the theory of interacting electrons and photons, can be solved to very good approximation with the traditional technology of pencil and paper. By contrast, quantum chromodynamics (QCD), the generally accepted theory of strongly interacting quarks and gluons, has proven to be remarkably resistant to that approach. But in recent years, advances in computer technology and algorithms have brought the ab initio, numerical simulation of QCD to a level of credibility that will have a significant impact on scientific discovery.