Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Author Addresses
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Exact and inexact solutions of the Einstein field equations
- 3 Inertial forces in general relativity
- 4 Relativistic radiation hydrodynamics: a covariant theory of flux-limiters
- 5 Relativistic gravitational collapse
- 6 The cosmic censorship hypothesis
- 7 The Kerr metric: a gateway to the roots of gravity?
- 8 Galactic astronomy since 1950
- 9 Galaxy distribution functions
- 10 Nonlinear galaxy clustering
- 11 Quasars: progress and prospects
- 12 Decaying neutrinos in astronomy and cosmology
- 13 Cosmological principles
- 14 Anisotropic and inhomogeneous cosmologies
- 15 Mach's principle and isotropic singularities
- 16 Implications of superconductivity in cosmic string theory
- 17 The formation and evaporation of primordial black holes
- 18 Evaporation of two dimensional black holes
- 19 Topology and topology change in general relativity
- 20 Decoherence of the cluttered quantum vacuum
- 21 Quantum non-locality and complex reality
- 22 The different levels of connections between science and objective reality
10 - Nonlinear galaxy clustering
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 December 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Author Addresses
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Exact and inexact solutions of the Einstein field equations
- 3 Inertial forces in general relativity
- 4 Relativistic radiation hydrodynamics: a covariant theory of flux-limiters
- 5 Relativistic gravitational collapse
- 6 The cosmic censorship hypothesis
- 7 The Kerr metric: a gateway to the roots of gravity?
- 8 Galactic astronomy since 1950
- 9 Galaxy distribution functions
- 10 Nonlinear galaxy clustering
- 11 Quasars: progress and prospects
- 12 Decaying neutrinos in astronomy and cosmology
- 13 Cosmological principles
- 14 Anisotropic and inhomogeneous cosmologies
- 15 Mach's principle and isotropic singularities
- 16 Implications of superconductivity in cosmic string theory
- 17 The formation and evaporation of primordial black holes
- 18 Evaporation of two dimensional black holes
- 19 Topology and topology change in general relativity
- 20 Decoherence of the cluttered quantum vacuum
- 21 Quantum non-locality and complex reality
- 22 The different levels of connections between science and objective reality
Summary
… we seek a theory which describes all that actually happens, and nothing that does not, a theory in which everything that is not forbidden is compulsory.
The Unity of the Universe D. W. Sciama (Faber & Faber, 1959)The clustering of galaxies on scales < 5h-1Mpc1 shows some remarkable scaling properties which somehow arise out of nonlinear gravitational self-organisation. This scaling is characteristic of structures that are referred to as multifractals. There are several ways of looking at these structures each providing their own special insights into the nature of the clustering. Multifractal scaling can be shown to be closely associated with the fact that galaxy counts-in-cells are approximately Lognormally distributed and with hierarchical fragmentation processes. Moreover, the statistical moments of the galaxy distribution scale in a way that is reminiscent of the renormalization group. This may throw light on the nature of the underlying dynamics of the nonlinear gravitational clustering process.
INTRODUCTION
When Dennis Sciama published his book “The Unity of the Universe” in 1959, the great debate was which theory of the Universe was the correct one: the “Big Bang” or the “Steady State”? Dennis had been a member of a group of Steady-State enthusiasts at Cambridge in the early 1950's.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Renaissance of General Relativity and CosmologyA Survey to Celebrate the 65th Birthday of Dennis Sciama, pp. 159 - 174Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1993