Related papers: From Einstein's Hole Argument to Dirac and Bergman…
For the past two decades, Einstein's Hole Argument (which deals with the apparent indeterminateness of general relativity due to the general covariance of the field equations) and its resolution in terms of Leibniz equivalence (the…
(Abridged Abstract) This paper deals with a number of technical achievements that are instrumental for a dis-solution of the so-called {\it Hole Argument} in general relativity. The work is carried through in metric gravity for the class of…
"The last remnant of physical objectivity of space-time" is disclosed in the case of a continuous family of spatially non-compact models of general relativity (GR). The {\it physical individuation} of point-events is furnished by the…
(abridged)The achievements of the present work include: a) A clarification of the multiple definition given by Bergmann of the concept of {\it (Bergmann) observable. This clarification leads to the proposal of a {\it main conjecture}…
This is a review of the chrono-geometrical structure of special and general relativity with a special emphasis on the role of non-inertial frames and of the conventions for the synchronization of distant clocks. ADM canonical metric and…
We address the problem of observables in generally invariant spacetime theories such as Einstein's general relativity. Using the refined notion of an event as a ``point-coincidence'' between scalar fields that completely characterise a…
Einstein presented the Hole Argument against General Covariance, understood as invariance with respect to a change of coordinates, as a consequence of his initial failure to obtain covariant equations that, in the weak static limit, contain…
An odd look at "standard" physics (Galileo, Newton, Einstein, Dirac) leading to a radical change of our concept of inertial motion and to new heuristic approaches of gravitation and the cosmological constant.
The confrontation between Einstein's theory of gravitation and experiment is summarized. Although all current experimental data are compatible with general relativity, the importance of pursuing the quest for possible deviations from…
Crucial observational tests of gravity physics are reviewed. Such tests are able to clarify the key question on the nature of gravitational interaction: is gravity the curvature of space? or is gravity a matter field in Minkowski flat space…
I provide a very brief sketch of some of Dirac's interests and work in gravity, particularly his Hamiltonian formulation of Einstein's theory and its relation to his earlier research.
The field equations of general relativity can be derived from the Einstein action, which is quadratic in connection coefficients, rather than the standard action involving the Gibbons-Hawking-York term and counterterm. We show that it is…
"The last remnant of physical objectivity of space-time" is disclosed, beyond the Leibniz equivalence, in the case of a continuous family of spatially non-compact models of general relativity. The {\it physical individuation} of…
In these lectures general relativity is outlined as the classical field theory of gravity, emphasizing physical phenomena rather than mathematical formalism. Dynamical solutions representing traveling waves as well as stationary fields like…
A review is given of the presymplectic approach to relativistic physical systems and of the determination of their Dirac's observables. After relativistic mechanics and Nambu string, the Dirac's observables of Yang-Mills theory with…
This is the first of a couple of papers in which, by exploiting the capabilities of the Hamiltonian approach to general relativity, we get a number of technical achievements that are instrumental both for a disclosure of \emph{new} results…
We give a general derivation of the gravitational hamiltonian starting from the Einstein-Hilbert action, keeping track of all surface terms. The surface term that arises in the hamiltonian can be taken as the definition of the `total…
Relations between the Friedmann observables of the expanding Universe and the Dirac observables in the generalized Hamiltonian approach are established for the Friedmann cosmological model of the Universe with the field excitations…
The general relativistic notion of gravitational and inertial mass is discussed from the general viewpoint of the tidal forces implicit in the curvature and the Einstein field equations within ponderable matter. A simple yet rigorously…
The construction of Dirac observables, that is gauge invariant objects, in General Relativity is technically more complicated than in other gauge theories such as the standard model due to its more complicated gauge group which is closely…