Abstract
The remarkable aspects of variational principles are twofold. First, they reveal that natural structures and processes result from principles of optimal conditions. Second, they are universal. All physical laws can be expressed in such a global form. This form leads to the local expression of physical laws, but it is richer and more powerful. In particular, it reveals the fundamental principles that govern physical laws.
Nature always acts by the shortest paths. Pierre de Fermat
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© 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
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Basdevant, JL. (2007). Variational Principles. In: Variational Principles in Physics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-37748-3_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-37748-3_2
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-37747-6
Online ISBN: 978-0-387-37748-3
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