A brief remark on energy conditions and the Geroch-Jang theorem

DOI10.1007/S10701-011-9583-YMaRDI QIDQ421237zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors James Owen Weatherall

Publication date 23 May 2012

Published in Foundations of Physics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1106.2336

zbMATH Keywords

general relativityenergy conditiongeodesic principleGeroch-Jang theoreminertial motion

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Equations of motion in general relativity and gravitational theory (83C10) Gravitational energy and conservation laws; groups of motions (83C40)

Abstract: The status of the geodesic principle in General Relativity has been a topic of some interest in the recent literature on the foundations of spacetime theories. Part of this discussion has focused on the role that a certain energy condition plays in the proof of a theorem due to Bob Geroch and Pong-Soo Jang ["Motion of a Body in General Relativity." Journal of Mathematical Physics 16(1), (1975)] that can be taken to make precise the claim that the geodesic principle is a theorem, rather than a postulate, of General Relativity. In this brief note, I show, by explicit counterexample, that not only is a weaker energy condition than the one Geroch and Jang state insufficient to prove the theorem, but in fact a condition still stronger than the one that they assume is necessary.

Recommendations

• On the status of the geodesic principle in Newtonian and relativistic physics
• Proving the principle: taking geodesic dynamics too seriously in Einstein's theory
• The Ehlers-Geroch theorem on geodesic motion in general relativity
• Energy conservation and equivalence principle in general relativity
• Geometry and motion in general relativity

Cites work

• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 3938015 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 3481460 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 2237955 (Why is no real title available?)
• On the status of the geodesic principle in Newtonian and relativistic physics
• The motion of a body in Newtonian theories
• Topics in the foundations of general relativity and Newtonian gravitation theory.

Cited in

(7)

• On the status of the geodesic principle in Newtonian and relativistic physics
• Conservation, inertia, and spacetime geometry
• The Ehlers-Geroch theorem on geodesic motion in general relativity
• Geometry and motion in general relativity
• On the argument from physics and general relativity
• Proving the principle: taking geodesic dynamics too seriously in Einstein's theory
• General relativity as a hybrid theory: the genesis of Einstein's work on the problem of motion

This page was built for publication: A brief remark on energy conditions and the Geroch-Jang theorem

Report a bug (only for logged in users!)Click here to report a bug for this page (MaRDI item Q421237)