Positions are therefore not
independent of the journey which terminates in them, and thereby
individuates them; and dates are not independent of the events which
distinguish them. The flux of existence comes first: matter and light
distend time by their pulses, they distend space by their deployments.
This, if I understand it, is one half the new theory; the other half is
not less acceptable. Newton had described motion as a result of two
principles: the first, inertia, was supposed to be inherent in bodies; the
second, gravity, was incidental to their co-existence. Yet inherent
inertia can only be observed relatively: it makes no difference to me
whether I am said to be moving at a great speed or absolutely at rest, if
I am not jolted or breathless, and if my felt environment does not change.
Inertia, or weight, in so far as it denotes something intrinsic, seems to
be but another name for substance or the principle of existence: in so far
as it denotes the first law of motion, it seems to be relative to an
environment. It would therefore be preferable to combine inertia and
attraction in a single formula, expressing the behaviour of bodies towards
one another in all their conjunctions, without introducing any inherent
forces or absolute measures. This seems to have been done by Einstein, or
at least impressively suggested: and it has been found that the new
calculations correspond to certain delicate observations more accurately
than the old.
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