  The AdS/CFT correspondence implies that the effective action of certain
strongly coupled large $N$ gauge theories satisfy the Hamilton-Jacobi equation
of 5d gravity. Using an analogy with the relativistic point particle, I
construct a low energy effective action that includes the Einstein action and
obeys a Callan-Symanzik-type RG-flow equation. It follows from the flow
equation that under quite general conditions the Einstein equations admit a
flat space-time solution, but other solutions with non-zero cosmological
constant are also allowed. I discuss the geometric interpretation of this
result in the context of warped compactifications.
