All Questions
6
questions
1
vote
3
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165
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Does Mach's principle imply that the gravitational field has a non-zero curl?
I would normally visualize the gravitational field as "radial", i.e., one whose curl is zero. However, while thinking about Mach's principle, particularly the notion of frame-dragging (as ...
- 1,325
8
votes
2
answers
569
views
Mach's principle and a reference frame for acceleration
Although there are different statements of Mach's principle, one statement could be that acceleration is meaningless unless it can be defined relative to something. The distance stars provide a fixed ...
- 13.7k
3
votes
1
answer
191
views
Is inertia still considered a mysterious force?
When I first saw, for example, weightless objects in a space capsule, I assumed that pushing them would require no effort because, of course, they did not weigh anything. On Earth, heavy objects are ...
- 2,238
1
vote
0
answers
92
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What is centrifugal force relative to? [duplicate]
Edit- the answer is mach's principle and mach's principle is sketchy so there is no good answer.
So I understand that centrifugal force is really just inertia and stuff but I still have a question.
...
- 11
9
votes
3
answers
1k
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Can we determine an absolute frame of reference taking into account general relativity?
Given that acceleration induces measurable physical effects, would it be correct to say that there should be an absolute inertial frame of reference? I know that one cannot distinguish a priori ...
- 127
2
votes
1
answer
164
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When we spin and feel our arms fly, is it the effect of gravity?
If accelerating reference frames can be treated as normal inertial reference frames but with gravity, then for a rotating reference frame, is the centrifugal $force = gravity$ ?
More specifically, I ...
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