Spacetime Emergence and General Covariance Transmutation
  Spacetime emergence refers to the notion that classical spacetime "emerges" as an approximate macroscopic entity from a non-spatio-temporal structure present in a more complete theory of interacting fundamental constituents. In this article, we propose a novel mechanism involving the "soldering" of internal and external spaces for the emergence of spacetime and the twin transmutation of general covariance. In the context of string theory, this mechanism points to a critical four dimensional spacetime background. 
Chiu Man Ho, Thomas W. Kephart, Djordje Minic and Y. Jack Ng
hep-th gr-qc hep-ph