Parton Distributions: Progress and Challenges

Abstract

We briefly discuss recent research on the spin-averaged parton densities of the proton, focusing on some aspects relevant to hard processes at the LHC. Specifically, after recalling the basic framework and the need for higher-order calculations, we address the evolution equations governing the scale dependence of the parton distributions and their solution, schemes for initial conditions and the inclusion of heavy quarks, recent progress on fits to data, and future high-precision constraints from LHC measurements.