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The Definition of Mach’s Principle

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Abstract

Two definitions of Mach’s principle are proposed. Both are related to gauge theory, are universal in scope and amount to formulations of causality that take into account the relational nature of position, time, and size. One of them leads directly to general relativity and may have relevance to the problem of creating a quantum theory of gravity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College Farm, The Town, South Newington, Banbury, Oxon, OX15 4JG, UK

    Julian Barbour

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  1. Julian Barbour
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Correspondence to Julian Barbour.

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It is a pleasure to celebrate with this paper the 80th birthday of my Ph.D. supervisor Peter Mittelstaedt, who has taken a life-long interest in Mach’s principle.

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Barbour, J. The Definition of Mach’s Principle. Found Phys 40, 1263–1284 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10701-010-9490-7

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