Minkowski Institute is inviting colleagues who are interested in
joining (as affiliated members of the Institute) its most
ambitious research project – to examine rigorously whether
gravitational phenomena are noting more than manifestations of the
non-Euclidean geometry of spacetime, which would mean that
gravitation is not a physical interaction.
This project follows strictly Minkowski’s program of geometrizing
Physics – after discovering the spacetime structure of the world
(all physical objects are, in reality, a forever given web of
worldlines in spacetime), Minkowski summarized this program:
“The whole world presents itself as resolved into such worldlines,
and I want to say in advance, that in my understanding the laws of
physics can find their most complete expression as interrelations
between these worldlines.”
Colleagues who join the project will take part in analyzing the
mathematical structure of general relativity with the explicit
intention to derive, following Minkowski’s program, all
predictions of general relativity by regarding gravitational
phenomena as effects of the non-Euclidean geometry of spacetime,
without assuming that gravitation is a physical interaction (i.e.,
without assuming the existence of gravitational energy and
momentum).
In 1921 Eddington mentioned the possibility that gravitation might
not be a physical interaction almost explicitly – “gravitation as
a separate agency becomes unnecessary” [A. S. Eddington, The
Relativity of Time, Nature 106, 802-804 (17 February 1921)].
The main theme of the Third Hermann Minkowski Meeting on the
Foundations of Spacetime Physics this year
(
https://minkowskiinstitute.org/meetings/2023/) will be the nature
of gravitation – whether it is merely spacetime geometry or it is
a physical interaction.
If interested, contact us at
m...@minkowskiinstitute.org or by
responding to this message.
Vesselin Petkov
Minkowski Institute
http://www.minkowskiinstitute.org/old/
(the new site of the Minkowski Institute is under construction):
http://www.minkowskiinstitute.org
http://www.minkowskiinstitute.org/old/gravitation.html
Montreal, Canada
http://spacetimecentre.org/vpetkov/