The beauty and power of divergent integrals

Abstract

Divergent integrals arise naturally in many areas of physics, and they are typically "tamed" as though they are dangerous beasts wreaking havoc in the mathematical landscape of physics. In this talk, I will discuss how divergent integrals became beautiful and powerful, offering in the process insight into the intimate relationship between divergent integrals and physical boundary conditions, and offering a novel method of evaluating convergent integrals using divergent integrals.