Related papers: A Machian Approach to General Relativity
It is shown that if one takes into account Mach's principle in the form which follows from quantum theory and considers it as a complementary constraint between the parameters which characterize the energy density and geometry of the…
General Relativity assumes that spacetime is fully described by the metric alone. An alternative is the so called Palatini formalism where the metric and the connections are taken as independent quantities. The metric-affine theory of…
We formulate a scalar realization of Sciama's Machian programme within the general Bergmann-Wagoner class of scalar--tensor gravity. Starting from a universally conformally coupled matter sector, we rewrite the field equations in terms of…
Linear perturbations of Friedmann-Robertson-Walker universes with any curvature and cosmological constant are studied in a general gauge without decomposition into harmonics. Desirable gauges are selected as those which embody best Mach's…
The paper discusses some aspects of real physical space and time: structure of electrodynamics; structure of gravitational-inert theory in the real world; formation of the real matter; Mach's principle and the radiational cosmic mass;…
When constructing general relativity (GR), Einstein required 4D general covariance. In contrast, we derive GR (in the compact, without boundary case) as a theory of evolving 3-dimensional conformal Riemannian geometries obtained by imposing…
First, we present a history of the school of thought that the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation acts as an ether in contemporary popular English. Then we illustrate the properties of this ether and of a hypothetical "test mass" using a…
General Relativity on closed spatial topologies can be derived, using a technique called "best-matching", as an evolving 3-geometry subject to constraints. These constraints can be thought of as a way of imposing temporal and spatial…
Modified General Relativity (MGR) is the natural extension of General Relativity (GR). MGR explicitly uses the smooth regular line element vector field $(\bm{X},-\bm{X}) $, which exists in all Lorentzian spacetimes, to construct a…
The equivalence principle is the conceptual basis for general relativity. In contrast Mach's principle, although said to have been influential on Einstein in his formulation of general relativity, has not been shown to be central to the…
The aim of this paper is to explain carefully the arguments behind the assertion that the correct quantum theory of gravity must be background independent. We begin by recounting how the debate over whether quantum gravity must be…
On his way to General Relativity (GR) Einstein gave several arguments as to why a special relativistic theory of gravity based on a massless scalar field could be ruled out merely on grounds of theoretical considerations. We re-investigate…
We show that a Lagrangian density proportional to $\sqrt{-g} \L_m^2/R$ reduces to a pressuron theory of gravity that is indistinguishable from General Relativity in the dust limit. The combination of matter and geometry in the same…
While Quantum Gravity remains elusive and Quantum Field Theory retains the interpretational difficulties of Quantum Mechanics, we have introduced an alternate approach to the unification of particles, fields, space and time, suggesting that…
The history of general relativity suggests that in absence of experimental data, constructing a theory on philosophical first principles can lead to a very useful theory as well as to ground-breaking insights about physical reality. The two…
Gravitomagnetism resulting from SR has been applied to geodetic precession and frame dragging. The substantial contribution of the "fictitious" Coriolis force, due to the relative rotation of the rest of the Universe in the non inertial…
Starting from the origin of Einstein general relativity (GR) the request of Mach on the theory's structure has been the core of the foundational debate. That problem is strictly connected with the nature of the mass-energy equivalence. It…
We investigate spontaneous symmetry breaking in a conformally invariant gravitational model. In particular, we use a conformally invariant scalar tensor theory as the vacuum sector of a gravitational model to examine the idea that…
Mach's principle applied to rotation can be correct if one takes into account the rotation of the quantum vacuum together with the Universe. Whether one can detect the rotation of the vacuum or not depends on its properties. If the vacuum…
Chae's analyses on GAIA observations of wide binary stars have fortified the paradigm of extended gravity with particular attention to MOND-like theories. We recall that, starting from the origin of Einstein's general relativity, the…