1. John A. Wheeler & Astrophysical Relativity Charles W Misner University of Maryland

2. John A Wheeler and the recertification of GR as true physics or

3. Erice, 1 June 2006 3 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" J A Wheeler phases Particles/nuclear 1933-1955 Particles/nuclear 1933-1955 Fields/general relativity 1953-1977 Fields/general relativity 1953-1977 Information/``It from bit’’ 1977-- Information/``It from bit’’ 1977--

4. Erice, 1 June 2006 4 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Wheeler timeline Born 9 July 1911 Born 9 July 1911 Ph.D. Johns Hopkins (Herzfeld) 1933 Ph.D. Johns Hopkins (Herzfeld) 1933 Bohr Institute 1934-35 Bohr Institute 1934-35 Married Janette Hegner 10 June 1935 Married Janette Hegner 10 June 1935 Asst. Prof. Princeton 1938 Asst. Prof. Princeton 1938 Bohr-Wheeler nuclear fission paper 1939 Bohr-Wheeler nuclear fission paper 1939 A-bomb, Hanford Washington 1942-45 A-bomb, Hanford Washington 1942-45 H-bomb 1950-1952 H-bomb 1950-1952 Moved to Austin, Texas, 1976 Moved to Austin, Texas, 1976 Retired from Texas 1986 Retired from Texas 1986

5. Erice, 1 June 2006 5 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" 2003 Einstein Prize to John A. Wheeler Princeton University (retired)

6. Erice, 1 June 2006 6 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Wheeler the Teacher Teaching to learn Teaching to learn Inspiration first Inspiration first Enthusiasm from current research Enthusiasm from current research Questions trump answers Questions trump answers Students produce physics Students produce physics

7. Erice, 1 June 2006 7 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

8. Erice, 1 June 2006 8 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

9. Erice, 1 June 2006 9 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

10. Erice, 1 June 2006 10 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

11. Erice, 1 June 2006 11 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

12. Erice, 1 June 2006 12 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler"

13. Erice, 1 June 2006 13 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" S. Fred Singer

14. Erice, 1 June 2006 14 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Tullio Regge

15. Erice, 1 June 2006 15 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Raymond Mjolsness

16. Erice, 1 June 2006 16 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Bob Euwema

17. Erice, 1 June 2006 17 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Barry Malik

18. Erice, 1 June 2006 18 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Kip Thorne

19. Erice, 1 June 2006 19 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" J. Peter Vajk

20. Erice, 1 June 2006 20 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" James W. York, Jr.

21. Erice, 1 June 2006 21 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Demetrios Christodoulou

22. Erice, 1 June 2006 22 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Remo Ruffini

23. Erice, 1 June 2006 23 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Robert Wald

24. Erice, 1 June 2006 24 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Sergio Hojman

25. Erice, 1 June 2006 25 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Jim Isenberg

26. Erice, 1 June 2006 26 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Claudio Teitelboim

27. Erice, 1 June 2006 27 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" John A. Wyler

28. Erice, 1 June 2006 28 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" William H. Press

29. Erice, 1 June 2006 29 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Larry Smarr

30. John A Wheeler and the recertification of GR as true physics

31. Erice, 1 June 2006 31 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" GR 1927--1950 1927—1933 Cosmology: Lemaitre, de Sitter, Hubble, Einstein 1927—1933 Cosmology: Lemaitre, de Sitter, Hubble, Einstein Einstein-Infeld-Hoffmann 1938, Einstein & Straus 1945 Einstein-Infeld-Hoffmann 1938, Einstein & Straus 1945 Unified Field theories (mostly weak maths) Unified Field theories (mostly weak maths) Lichnerowicz, Landau & Lifshitz, Bergmann, Infeld, Synge [see Kennefick histoy] Lichnerowicz, Landau & Lifshitz, Bergmann, Infeld, Synge [see Kennefick histoy]

32. Erice, 1 June 2006 32 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Bad Kharma Caltech professor to Kip Thorne as Kip departs for Princeton: GR has little relevance … look elsewhere for interesting physics. Caltech professor to Kip Thorne as Kip departs for Princeton: GR has little relevance … look elsewhere for interesting physics. Novikov’s wife given advice: relativity is a backwater … Ivor should leave it. Novikov’s wife given advice: relativity is a backwater … Ivor should leave it. [KST p268]

33. Erice, 1 June 2006 33 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Post WWII GR leaders Wheeler Wheeler Sciama Sciama Zeldovich Zeldovich Bondi Bondi Choquet-Bruhat Choquet-Bruhat Schild Schild DeWitt DeWitt

34. Erice, 1 June 2006 34 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Wheeler 1950s “Mass without Mass” – Geons field energy can be confined by gravity massive objects don’t need particles nonlinear GR does new things “Mass without Mass” – Geons field energy can be confined by gravity massive objects don’t need particles nonlinear GR does new things “Charge without Charge” – wormholes, topology, lead to Finkelstein & Beckedorff geometrical views of “Schwarzschild singularity” “Charge without Charge” – wormholes, topology, lead to Finkelstein & Beckedorff geometrical views of “Schwarzschild singularity” Brill wave initial conditions Brill wave initial conditions

35. Erice, 1 June 2006 35 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" JAW 1950s theme “Dynamic convervativism”: “Dynamic convervativism”: Explore the equations of physics for what they have to say. Explore the equations of physics for what they have to say. Don’t just ask them for details about things you’ve already seen. Don’t just ask them for details about things you’ve already seen.

36. Erice, 1 June 2006 36 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Wheeler 1950s Encouraged Weber’s wave detectors Encouraged Weber’s wave detectors Regge-Wheeler perturbations of Schwarzschild Regge-Wheeler perturbations of Schwarzschild Sciama, Penrose visit Princeton Sciama, Penrose visit Princeton New Experiments Pound Rebke 1959 redshift Pound Rebke 1959 redshift Dicke experimental gravity group formed Dicke experimental gravity group formed

37. Erice, 1 June 2006 37 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Wheeler early 1960s Collapse to a singularity must be impossible (Note this brings accepted physics, nuclear forces, into the GR picture) Collapse to a singularity must be impossible (Note this brings accepted physics, nuclear forces, into the GR picture) Finkelstein, Beckedorff-Misner, Kruskal give a picture of collapse Finkelstein, Beckedorff-Misner, Kruskal give a picture of collapse Brill-Hartle: gravitational waves have energy Brill-Hartle: gravitational waves have energy Hahn-Lindquist: numerical relativity 1963 Hahn-Lindquist: numerical relativity 1963

38. Erice, 1 June 2006 38 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" Gravitational Expansion 1963-1977 Princeton group expands: Thorne, York, Bekenstein, Ruffini Princeton group expands: Thorne, York, Bekenstein, Ruffini Sciama, Misner, Schild, Thorne, Infeld, Chandrasekhar, Hawking, Newman, … build research groups Sciama, Misner, Schild, Thorne, Infeld, Chandrasekhar, Hawking, Newman, … build research groups “Texas” meetings, quasars, pulsars, Weber claims, Kerr metric, singularity Theorems, “no hair” theorems, BH Thermodynamics “Texas” meetings, quasars, pulsars, Weber claims, Kerr metric, singularity Theorems, “no hair” theorems, BH Thermodynamics

39. Erice, 1 June 2006 39 International School on Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" References Wheeler/Ford, “Geons, Black Holes, …” (Norton 1998) Wheeler/Ford, “Geons, Black Holes, …” (Norton 1998) Thorne, “Black Holes, …”, (Norton 1994) Thorne, “Black Holes, …”, (Norton 1994) Anon., ed., “Family Gathering”, 2 vol. (privately distributed 1977: AIP, Princeton, Texas) Anon., ed., “Family Gathering”, 2 vol. (privately distributed 1977: AIP, Princeton, Texas) Bartusiak, “Einstein’s Unfinished Symphony” (J Henry Press 2000) Bartusiak, “Einstein’s Unfinished Symphony” (J Henry Press 2000) Kennefick, “… Gravitational Waves” (Princeton U Pr 2007?) Kennefick, “… Gravitational Waves” (Princeton U Pr 2007?)