[net.physics] Weird Gravitational Effects at Princeton, NJ

sutin@astrovax.UUCP (Brian M. Sutin) (09/11/85)

	At the Princeton University Astrophysics department, we have
noticed a strange effect: one of periodic gravitational attraction.
For years now, many of the faculty and graduate students seem to
mysteriously gravitate towards the conference room, anywhere from 3:30
to 4:30, for no apparent reason.  This has been going on for so long
that tea and cookies are served so that everyone will have something
to do until they can go back to work.
	If anyone out there can explain this phenomenon, our
department would be overjoyed.  I believe that this is perhaps the
most interesting phenomenon of gravitational anomaly ever posted to
this group.

Brian Sutin
astrovax!sutin

hull@hao.UUCP (Howard Hull) (09/12/85)

> 
> 	At the Princeton University Astrophysics department, we have
> noticed a strange effect: one of periodic gravitational attraction.
> For years now, many of the faculty and graduate students seem to
> mysteriously gravitate towards the conference room, anywhere from 3:30
> to 4:30, for no apparent reason.  This has been going on for so long
> that tea and cookies are served so that everyone will have something
> to do until they can go back to work.
> 	If anyone out there can explain this phenomenon, our
> department would be overjoyed.  I believe that this is perhaps the
> most interesting phenomenon of gravitational anomaly ever posted to
> this group.
> 
> Brian Sutin
> astrovax!sutin

Yes.  It is indeed a local anomaly.  It happens around here on Tuesdays.
The expression describing it is:

grad(PHI) = _rw_(d(iq)/dPHI)heh + _ww_(d(iq)/dPHI)heh + _ow_(d(i)q/dPHI)heh

	where
		grad is "graduate"
		PHI is "PHIsics student"
		= is "is made to conform to"
		_rw_ is the "right way" vector
		_ww_ is the "wrong way" vector
		_ow_ is the "our way" vector
		iq   is the IQ or "included charge"
		and  heh-heh-heh is peculiar to the local coordinate system,
		     and represents a break in the local symmetry that is
		     expressed by three local constants.  These, in turn, are
		     related to a gauge function, and thus may, in quantum work,
		     have something to do with an exchange particle.

Although this exact expression is not mentioned in the reference below, the
nature of the phenomenon is thoroughly explained therein.

See Feynman, Richard P. "Surely you are joking, Mr. Feynman"  recently pub'd.
								     Howard Hull
[If yet unproven concepts are outlawed in the range of discussion...
                   ...Then only the deranged will discuss yet unproven concepts]
        {ucbvax!hplabs | allegra!nbires | harpo!seismo } !hao!hull