Related papers: On the global existence of time
Time does not obviously appear amongst the coordinates on the constrained phase space of general relativity in the Hamiltonian formulation. Recent work in finite-dimensional models claims that topological obstructions generically make the…
It is well-known that global hyperbolicity implies that the Lorentzian distance is finite and continuous. By carefully analysing the causes of discontinuity of the Lorentzian distance, we show that in most other respects the finiteness and…
Under normal circumstances most members of the general relativity community focus almost exclusively on the local properties of spacetime, such as the locally Euclidean structure of the manifold and the Lorentzian signature of the metric…
No Hopf-Rinow Theorem is possible in Lorentzian Geometry. Nonetheless, we prove that a spacetime is globally hyperbolic if and only if it is metrically complete with respect to the null distance of a time function. Our approach is based on…
This talk discusses various aspects of the structure of space-time presenting mechanisms leading to the explanation of the "rigidity" of the manifold and to the emergence of time, i.e. of the Lorentzian signature. The proposed ingredient is…
It is often said that in general relativity time does not exist. This is because the Einstein equations generate motion in time that is a symmetry of the theory, not true time evolution. In quantum gravity, the timelessness of general…
By studying the set of correlations that are theoretically possible between physical systems without allowing for signalling of information backwards in time, we here identify correlations that can only be achieved if the time ordering…
We show that finiteness of the Lorentzian distance is equivalent to the existence of generalised time functions with gradient uniformly bounded away from light cones. To derive this result we introduce new techniques to construct and…
From the Physics point of view, time is now best described through General Relativity, as part of space-time which is a dynamical object encoding gravity. Time possesses also some intrinsic irreversibility due to thermodynamics, quantum…
A possible solution for the problem of non-existence of universal time is given by utilizing Goedel's incompleteness theorem.
We show the rigid singularity theorem, that is, a globally hyperbolic spacetime satisfying the strong energy condition and containing past trapped sets, either is timelike geodesically incomplete or splits isometrically as space $\times$…
We formulate an algebraic criterion for the presence of global anomalies on globally hyperbolic space-times in the framework of locally covariant field theory. We discuss some consequences and check that it reproduces the well-known global…
A global existence theorem, with respect to a geometrically defined time, is shown for Gowdy symmetric globally hyperbolic solutions of the Einstein-Vlasov system for arbitrary (in size) initial data. The spacetimes being studied contain…
I argue that there are no physical singularities in space-time. Singular space-time models do not belong to the ontology of the world, because of a simple reason: they are concepts, defective solutions of Einstein's field equations. I…
Understanding the emergence of a tangible 4-dimensional space-time from a quantum theory of gravity promises to be a tremendously difficult task. This article makes the case that this task may not have to be carried. Space-time as we know…
Attempts to quantize general relativity encounter an odd problem. The Hamiltonian that normally generates time evolution vanishes in the case of general relativity as a result of diffeomorphism invariance. The theory seems to be saying that…
Despite the obvious utility of the concept, it has often been argued that time does not exist. I take the opposite perspective: let's imagine that time does exist, and the universe is described by a quantum state obeying ordinary…
Approaches to quantum gravity often involve the disappearance of space and time at the fundamental level. The metaphysical consequences of this disappearance are profound, as is illustrated with David Lewis's analysis of modality. As…
I present an analysis of the physical assumptions needed to obtain the metric structure of space-time. For this purpose I combine the axiomatic approach pioneered by Robb with ideas drawn from works on Weyl's "Raumproblem". The concept of a…
Of those gauge theories of gravity known to be equivalent to general relativity, only the biconformal gauging introduces new structures - the quotient of the conformal group of any pseudo-Euclidean space by its Weyl subgroup always has…