Criticism of the ontological foundations of the general theory of relativity
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: General Relativity is widely regarded as one of the most successful physical theories of the twentieth century. However, its ontological foundations — the treatment of space and time as fundamental entities and gravity as their geometric curvature — remain problematic from a physical point of view. This paper argues that space and time are not fundamental but secondary characteristics arising from real physical processes. We propose an alternative ontological framework in which reality is understood as a system of interacting processes governed by two fundamental opposing tendencies. Within this view, gravity is reinterpreted not as a geometric property of spacetime, but as a macroscopic effect of non-uniform resonance between regions of different process density and intensity. The paper critically examines the ontological assumptions of General Relativity and outlines a process-based alternative that avoids geometric abstraction while remaining consistent with observed gravitational phenomena. Despite its high mathematical coherence and wide applicability, General Relativity contains several fundamental ontological problems that call into question its status as a complete and consistent physical theory. These problems are related not so much to the accuracy of its predictions as to the internal inconsistency of its basic concepts and the lack of a clear physical mechanism behind several of its key claims.
Author: Kartansky, Mary
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7171150867
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