Albert Einstein based his General Theory of Relativity on his "Principle of Equivalence" postulate that Inertial acceleration and Gravitational acceleration are equivalent. He thought a person in a room resting on earth would feel the same gravitational effect as a person in a accelerating rocket (room) therefore they are equivalent and be used in either situation. This postulate is the foundation of the theory.

Gravitational acceleration (a primary force) is just a special case of "inertial acceleration". Gravity exerts its force on a body simultaneously causing no stress on the body, whereas inertial acceleration is caused by a primary force (gravity, chemical reaction, etc.) acceleration being altered in some way by a secondary force (altering the primary force in some way) which causes stress on the body.

The fact is that neither "gravitational acceleration" or "inertial acceleration" can create gravity, they can only create the effect of weight under certain conditions. A body being accelerated by gravity alone is always weightless. Gravity cannot, by itself, create weight it can only cause a body to accelerate. Only when a Secondary (ordinary) force is also exerted changing the body's acceleration will the effect of weight be created (such as the surface of the earth or the floor of an accelerating rocket).

A Secondary (ordinary) force has no energy of its own, it can only alter the energy of the four primary forces such as; gravity, electromagetic emission, strong and weak. For example - The Secondary force of the surface of the earth alters (stops) the gravitational acceleration of a body (creating the effect of weight). Chemical energy can power rockets while the floor of the rocket creates the effect of weight pushing on the astronaut, electric motors power an elevator while the secondary force of creates the effect of weight on the person inside, etc.. The primary forces and secondary forces work closely together to create useful things. Secondary forces harness the primary energy/forces making just about everything that exists work.

An astronaut in an accelerating rocket (room) would feel the same effect as if he were standing on earth. This is true but it is not because gravity and inertia are equivalent, it because these two phenomena under certain conditions can produce the same effect, "WEIGHT".

Inertia is the law of nature that requires a force be exerted on a body to accelerate the body, relative to other bodies (momentum), or to rise it to a higher space energy level, relative to absolute space (inertial mass). Inertia is not a force, it is a requirement that a force be exerted on the body to accelerate the body.

Gravity, a "primary force", is one the laws of nature that fulfills this requirement. Gravity by itself can only accelerate a body, another force must also be exerted on a falling body for weight to be created. I call this force an "ordinary" or "secondary" force.

Note: There are two reasons why bodies all fall at the same rate. (1.) The first one is simply because gravity exerts its force on all the sub-atomic particles of matter simultaneously. They all have the same or nearly same mass and are electrically connected to each other. There is no feeling of stress when a body is accelerating under the force of gravity such as there is when the body is being accelerated by a secondary force (such as an airplane being catapulted into the air). (2.) The second one is Newton's reason that a heavy body has more inertia and therfore requires more inertial force then a lighter body so they will both fall at the same rate.

Actually, in both cases (A) the accelerating rocket and (B) the room resting on the ground, weight, not gravity, is created! The weight created in the accelerating rocket, is just as real as weight created by the surface of the Earth obstructing (secondary force) the acceleration of the body toward the center of the earth. "Weight" is created in both cases because the body's state of inertia (acceleration) is being changed by a Secondary Force not because Gravity and Inertia are equivalent.

Weight is created simply because:

1. The Law of Inertia requires a force be exerted on a body to accelerate the body.

2. The unique manner that a Secondary (ordinary) Force exerts its force on a body. Secondary force exerts its force in succession, one body pushes against the next body which pushes against the next etc. etc.. A molecule pushes against the next molecule, an atom pushes against the next atom (even though, at this level they may not actually touching each other), the floor of a rocket pushes against the feet of an astronaut which pushes against his/her ankles which push against his/her legs etc. etc. It does not matter whether you are standing on the surface of earth or if you are accelerating in a rocket. The effect is the same - weight is created.

Gravity, (a Primary Force), exerts its force on all the atoms of a body simultaneously, not in succession. That is the big difference! A body accelerating under Gravity's influence alone is weightless. Only when a Secondary Force alters the body's gravitational acceleration, in some manner, is the effect of weight created (such as when the surface of earth is preventing a body, "resting" on its surface from accelerating toward the center of earth). All bodies "resting" on earth's surface are actually in a state of "restrained" acceleration. Their gravitational acceleration is being obstructed by the surface of the earth (a secondary force).

(It is very important to distinguish between these two words - "succession" and "simultaneous".)

In both cases of Einstein's thought experiment (the accelerating rocket and the room "resting" on the ground) a Secondary Force is creating the effect of weight. When a Primary Force such as Gravity is exerted on a body alone, (falling body) the body accelerates but the body is weightless! Gravity is exerting exactly the same amount of force on each atomic particle of the body, simultaneously. This lack of weight sensation fooled Einstein into thinking that no force was being exerted on the body - that gravity is not a force! He said that falling bodies simply follow geodesic lines of curved space.

Actually the falling body is completely under the influence of gravitational force. It is being accelerated by gravity alone and therefore no weight sensation is created. Weight itself is not a force, it is the unique effect created - when a Secondary Force is exerted against a body and can be used as an accurate measurement (weight) to indicate the amount of Secondary Force that is being exerted either by gravity or an accelerating rocket, etc. it makes no difference whether it is by gravity or by an accelerating rocket. In both cases it is WEIGHT that is created - NOT GRAVITY. On Earth, weight is the measure of Secondary Force required to prevent a body from falling (accelerating) 32.2 ft./sec.2 toward the center of Earth under the force of gravity.

Weight is created only when a Secondary Force is exerted against a body, thereby altering the body's original inertial acceleration caused by a Primary Force. It could be Gravity or another Primary Force such as those that create the chemical reactions which produce the gases that propel a rocket or the electromagnetic force of the elevator's motors, it makes no difference. The important thing is that a Secondary Force must be exerted to STOP OR ALTER the body's acceleration for the effect of weight to be created.

If a body is "resting" on the surface of the Earth, the surface prevents (stops) it from continuing its fall toward the center of the Earth - the body is in a state of "restrained" acceleration. If the surface of the earth is removed the body will immediately continue its acceleration toward the center of the earth. In both cases - the accelerating rocket or the elevator resting on the ground a secondary force is being exerted the person to create the unique effect of weight.

Since it is a Secondary Force that creates the effect of weight in both cases (A and B), and Gravity is not a factor in the accelerating rocket (and both cases do not even create exactly the same acceleration). Therefore, Einstein's postulate, "The Principle of Equivalence", has not been proven by his thought experiment.

Note: The idea that a light beam will be influenced by Gravity being exerted on it, also has not been proven. The star's light beam that was supposedly deflected by the Sun's gravity to add credibility to Einstein's theory was simply optically refracted by the Sun's solar wind (atmosphere) as it passed through its extended corona. The sun's solar wind extends far beyond the solar system!

Donald Louis Hamilton - author of The MIND of Mankind; Human Imagination, the source of Mankind's tremendous power!

Ref. Book - "Mind of Mankind" published 1996, Chapt 18. "Weight, Its Relation to Inertia and Gravity"

The Two Energies of Matter

Inertial Mass - The Space Energy Level of Matter

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