Hip Glossary: String theory

String theory is a model of fundamental physics whose building blocks are one-dimensional extended objects (strings) rather than the zero-dimensional points (particles) that are the basis of the Standard Model of particle physics. Due to this, string theory avoids problems associated with the presence of point-like particles in theories of physics and helps to develop a sensible quantum theory of gravity. Moreover, string theory appears to be able to describe the known natural forces (gravitational, electromagnetic, weak and strong) with the same set of equations. Studies of string theory have revealed that it predicts not just strings, but also higher-dimensional objects (branes). String theory strongly suggests the existence of ten or eleven (in M-theory) spacetime dimensions, as opposed to the relativistic four (three spatial and time).

source:wikipedia