In article <[Only registered users see links. ] >, [Only registered users see links. ] (Daniel G. Emilio) wrote:
Caused is the wrong word here. GR says gravity *is* spacetime curvature.
It is really impossible to say what causes what here. Spacetime
curvature (aka gravity) is present whenever matter is present and matter
is present whenever spacetime is curved. So, there is no obvious way to
say one is the cause of the other.
In the context of GR there are several problems with the statement
above. First, there is no such thing as "gravitational force" in GR. The
force you feel sitting in your chair is due to the interaction of the
chair with your body. It is really an electrstatic force that
accelerates your body. Here, I am talking about acceleration as measured
from a locally inertial frame of reference, aka free fall.
Second, local curvature of spacetime isn't determined by mass alone. The
local flow of energy and momemtum both affect curvature of spacetime.
This isn't correct. GR is a non-linear theory and spacetime curvature