This festschrift was conceived in connection with the symposium 'Topics on Quantum Gravity and Beyond,' held in honor of Louis Witten. The majority of the essay

This volume comprises the contributions to the proceedings of Deserfest ? a festschrift in honor of Stanley Deser. Many of Stanley Deser?s colleagues and longti

Each contribution is an article in itself, and great effort has been made by the authors to be lucid and not too technical. A few brief highlights of the round-