ASYMPTOTIC PADE APPROXIMANT PREDICTIONS - UP TO 5 LOOPS IN QCD AND SQCD

We use asymptotic Pade approximants to predict the four-and five-loop beta functions in QCD and N=1 supersymmetric QCD, as well as the quark mass anomalous dimensions in Abelian and non-Abelian gauge theories. We show how the accuracy of our previous beta-function predictions at the four-loop level may be further improved by using estimators weight ed over negative numbers of flavors (WAPAP's). The accuracy of the imp roved four-loop results encourages confidence in the new five-loop bet a-function predictions that we present. However, the WAPAP approach do es not provide improved results for the anomalous mass dimension, or f or Abelian theories.