A number of theoretical investigations in theoretical elementary particle physics will be carried out, focusing primarily on the physics of the strongly interacting particles as described by the quantum chromodynamic theory which is widely accepted as the correct fundamental description of the nuclear force. The methods used will involve extensive computations on massively parallel dedicated computers. An important specific aim of the research is an accurate (few percent) calculation from the fundamental theory of the electromagnetic fine structure of the spectrum of strongly interacting particles. This will be one of the first precise tests of quantum chromodynamics, which up to now has only been tested at best at the 5-10% level. In addition, this research program is the first to allow an accurate determination of the masses of the quarks, the fundamental building blocks of all known strongly interacting particles.
