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AGPhil: Arbeitsgruppe Philosophie der Physik

AGPhil 2: Space, Time and Symmetry I

AGPhil 2.1: Vortrag

Dienstag, 31. März 2020, 11:00–11:30, H-HS IV

Energy-momentum conservation and the specificity of general relativity — •Valeriya Chasova — Archives Henri-Poincare (AHP-PReST UMR 7117), University of Strasbourg — Centre de philosophie des sciences et societes (CEFISES), Universite catholique de Louvain

Harvey Brown [2005] argued that general relativity (GR) is specific in that inertial motion enjoys a specific status there, and he derived this status using the fact that Einstein's equations ensure the conservation of the energy-momentum tensor. In a recent paper [2019 in Studies], Weatherall shows however that the same status can also be achieved in other theories including special relativity (SR) and Newtonian gravitation (NG), and for this he relies on the fact that in these theories as much as in GR the energy-momentum conservation can also be derived from properties of the dynamics of the matter. If Weatherall is right, the specificity of GR can no longer hinge on the status of inertial motion, so I consider whether it may hinge instead on the specificity in deriving the energy-momentum conservation. Here Brown's remark that Einstein's equations ensure this conservation in GR is of help, as there is no analogue of this in SR or NG. So GR would come out as specific provided, when considering what makes a theory specific, one relied on deriving the energy-momentum conservation via field equations rather than via the dynamics of the matter. So I discuss whether we are entitled to do so.