Related papers: Relational Mechanics as a gauge theory
General relativity and quantum mechanics have both revealed the relativity of certain notions that were previously thought to be absolute. I clarify the precise sense in which these theories are relational, and I argue that the various…
This is the first paper of a five part work in which we study the Lagrangian and Hamiltonian structure of classical field theories with constraints. Our goal is to explore some of the connections between initial value constraints and gauge…
Mach's Principle is usually taken to mean that the mass of a particle as measured locally is determined in some way by the other matter in the universe. This is difficult to formalize in 4D,but is feasible in 5D if the scalar potential of…
We present an elastic constitutive model of gravity where we identify physical space with the mid-hypersurface of an elastic hyperplate called the "cosmic fabric" and spacetime with the fabric's world volume. Using a Lagrangian formulation,…
It is well known that nonrelativistic quantum mechanics presents a clear asymmetry between space and time. Much of this asymmetry is attributed to the lack of Lorentz invariance of the theory. Nonetheless, a recent work [Phys. Rev. A…
Several new ideas related to Special and General Relativity are proposed. The black-box method is used for the synchronization of the clocks and the space axes between two inertial systems or two accelerated systems and for the derivation…
The geometric foundations of General Relativity are revisited, with particular attention to its gauge invariance, as a key to understanding the true nature of spacetime. Beyond the common image of spacetime as a deformable 'fabric' filling…
The non-relativistic version of the multi-temporal quantization scheme of relativistic particles in a family of non-inertial frames (see hep-th/0502194) is defined. At the classical level the description of a family of non-rigid…
The formulation of a dynamical theory of General Relativity, including matter, is viewed as a problem of coupling Einstein's theory of pure gravity, formulated as an action principle, to an independently chosen and well defined field theory…
Contemporary relativity theory is restricted in two points: (1) a use of the Riemannian space-time geometry and (2) a use of inadequate (nonrelativistic) concepts. Reasons of these restrictions are analysed in [1]. Eliminating these…
Based on the Bohr's correspondence principle it is shown that relativistic mechanics and quantum mechanics may be considered as generalizations of classical mechanics. A comparative description of relativistic and classical mechanics is…
The notion of microscopic state of the system at a given moment of time as a point in the phase space as well as a notion of trajectory is widely used in classical mechanics. However, it does not have an immediate physical meaning, since…
We revisit the old question of what distinguishes the formulation of spacetime geometry in terms of a Lorentzian metric physically from more general geometric structures. Our approach to this question is operational and leads us to also…
The concept of a physical space, which actualizes Euclidean geometry, is not confined to the statics of solids but extensible to the phenomena where Newtonian mechanics is valid, defining its concept of time. The laws of propagation of…
Mach argued for a relational rather than an absolute notion of space, insisting that centrifugal forces inside a rotating object such as a bucket can be reproduced by keeping the bucket fixed and rotating the universe. In response to a…
A simple mathematical procedure is introduced which allows redefining in an exact way divergent integrals and limits that appear in the basic equations of classical electrodynamics with point charges. In this way all divergences are at once…
Current theories of massless free particle assume {\sl unitary} space inversion and {\sl anti-unitary} time reversal operators. In so doing robust classes of possible theories are discarded. In the present work theories of massless systems…
An ontology of Leibnizian relationalism, consisting in distance relations among sparse matter points and their change only, is well recognized as a serious option in the context of classical mechanics. In this paper, we investigate how this…
We reformulate classical electromagnetism within the matter-space framework of relativistic fluid dynamics. The central assumption is that the relevant degrees of freedom are encoded in differential forms on a three-dimensional matter space…
This paper elaborates on relationalism about space and time as motivated by a minimalist ontology of the physical world: there are only matter points that are individuated by the distance relations among them, with these relations changing.…