The Running Coupling from SU(3) Potentials

From an accurate determination of the inter-quark potential, one can study the running coupling constant for a range of $R$-values and hence estimate the scale $\Lambda_{\overline{\rm MS}}$. Detailed results are presented for $SU(3)$ pure gauge theory from a study of a $36^4$ lattice at $\beta=6.5$. (to appear in Proceedings of Lattice 1992 - Amsterdam)