Bentley's paradox

Bentley's paradox is a cosmological paradox pointing to a problem occurring when Newton's theory of gravitation is applied to cosmology: "According to Newton, each star in the universe ought to be attracted towards every other star. They should not remain motionless, at a constant distance from each other, but should all fall together to some central point. Newton admitted as much in a letter to Richard Bentley, a leading Cambridge philosopher of the time."[1] Newton solved the paradox by claiming that God prevented the collapse by making "constant minute corrections".[2]

See also

References and notes

  1. ↑ "This Month in Physics History - Einstein's Biggest Blunder", APS News, Vol. 14, Nr. 7, July 2005, online
  2. ↑ Clegg, Brian (4 August 2009). "What and How Big?". Before the Big Bang: The Prehistory of Our Universe. St. Martin's Press. pp. 32–35. ISBN 9780312385477