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An Italian calculus for general relativity

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Lettera Matematica

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Abstract

The mathematical tool that allowed Albert Einstein to develop the general theory of relativity, concluded in 1915 and now considered his greatest scientific masterpiece, was tensor calculus, then known as absolute differential calculus. This algorithmic system had been created at the end of the nineteenth century by the Italian mathematician Gregorio Ricci-Curbastro who, together with his most brilliant pupil, Tullio Levi-Civita, had applied it to several problems in geometry and mathematical physics. However, before the birth of the great Einsteinian theory, the new calculus was not been sufficiently appreciated by the contemporaries, as its complexity appeared to render it superfluous. It asserted itself only with the triumph of general relativity, since it proved to be indispensable to formulate the theory and had shown its power and elegance in its construction.

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Notes

  1. The original letter, in English, is in possession of the family of G. Ricci-Curbastro; a copy is kept at the Biblioteca Trisi in Lugo (Italy).

  2. The original letter, in German, is kept in the Albert Einstein Archives in Jerusalem.

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  1. Via Oreste Beltrami 4, 48123, Ravenna, Italy

    Fabio Toscano

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  1. Fabio Toscano
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Correspondence to Fabio Toscano.

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Toscano, F. An Italian calculus for general relativity. Lett Mat Int 5, 25–31 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40329-017-0163-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40329-017-0163-7

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