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If Einstein's theory roughly says that massive objects deform space proportional to their mass, the effect of which is that massive objects (all else held equal
by haneefmubarak 7y ago
If Einstein's theory roughly says that massive objects deform space proportional to their mass, the effect of which is that massive objects (all else held equal) will tend to move towards each other more so than they would otherwise; meanwhile Newton's theory says that massive objects attract each other proportional to the product of their masses divided by the square of their distance; and Newton's theory does in the vast majority of useful cases yield approximately the same numerical result as Einstein's theory, then how is Newton's theory not an approximation of Einstein's theory?
- ignoramous 6y agoConsider the argument from the point of mathematics of it all, and the entire genre of relativity which is a vehement departure from classical physics. Newton's model captures the essence but isn't the eternal truth. Relativity proved that. Today, singularities have been proven to exist that point to missing pieces in Einstein's theory. The point is, simpler models are a good approximation even though they don't hold true under scrutiny, so, at what point do we stop obsessing over details and complex models professionals come up with or the policy-makers seek because surely there's law of diminishing returns at play here?
- heavenlyblue 6y agoThe law of diminishing returns only works in linear spaces. When you reach that point the only progress you can make is to create a better model of reality that would include these wraps.