How to Unify General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics (Ideas for Research #2)

Physicists have been struggling to reconcile general relativity and quantum mechanics. They can be reconciled by defining a unified frame of reference, the Universal Observer. This requires acknowledging that Bohr and Einstein have the same conceptual model for Space and Time. Their disagreements have been widely discussed and published. (1) However, there is a fundamental agreement buried in their original writings that defines the common foundation for their theories.

First, Einstein believed that what we call Space and Time are inventions of the human intellect. He posited that humans infer the existence of Newtonian Space and Time from our everyday experiences. Consequently, he felt free to create general relativity as a theory with only Local frames of reference and unique coordinate systems. He wrote that "there is an infinite number of spaces, which are in motion relative to each other." (2)

Consequently, each (and every) Local Observer's frame is (a) at rest with (b) no gravitational field. (3) All measurements of Space and Time are Local values. There is no Universal Observer in general relativity. For example, the Local clocks on the GPS satellites must be frequently adjusted for the effects of motion and gravity to stay in sync with Local clocks on the ground.

Similarly, Bohr rejected the classical definition of Space and Time so that it is impossible to visualize quantum events. (4) Quantum theory has only Local Participants that create observations as interactions. Wheeler uses the metaphor of observations as Local fence posts—we have no idea what exists or happens between them. (5)

However, visualization is necessary to define the Universal Observer, the non-local frame of reference. There is one way to define the Universal Observer—by defining an Energy-density field as the lower layer of our Universe that emerges from Schrödinger’s fundamental field in quantum theory. (The upper two layers are radiation and matter.)

Schrödinger's fundamental field is Maxwell's A-field universal substrate, and Feynman also made it fundamental in Quantum ElectroDynamics (QED). (6) Maxwell defined this energy-density layer in his forgotten "Theory of Light" (7) that has 20 equations and seven fields (A, B, D, E, H, J, and energy density). (8)

Maxwell's energy-density field layer is not identified as such in general relativity. However, it is shown as the field of Force that affects local events. (9) To ignore its local effects and model curved spacetime, Einstein defined it as a constant force. Its inverted definition 1/Force is 8πG/c^4, which is the ratio of the sources of gravity to spacetime curvature. This constant ratio maintains the structure of our Universe as a function of the speed of light.

Maxwell wrote: (10) "In speaking of the Energy of the field, however, I wish to be understood literally. All energy is the same as mechanical energy, whether it exists in the form of motion or in that of elasticity, or in any other form. The energy in electromagnetic phenomena is mechanical energy. The only question is, Where does it reside?"

Maxwell answered his own question: The momentum resides in the A field of the magnetic potential, the universal substrate of our Universe. He defined the product of the A field with its second time derivative (the J field of current density) as the energy-density field.

Maxwell's energy-density field is the Euclidean substrate that allows us to model general relativity and quantum events in the same frame of reference. It is identified in the unified Interval Dynamics Theory (IDT) as the Universal Observer. As Bohr wrote, "Only in terms of the classical electromagnetic theory is it at all possible to give a tangible content to the question of the nature of light and matter." (11)

My book, Interval Dynamics Theory, that provides more details is forthcoming. The plan is to have it on Amazon by the end of 2024.

(1) Bohr, Niels. “Discussion with Einstein on Epistemological Problems in Atomic Physics.” In Quantum Theory and Measurement, edited by John Archibald Wheeler and Wojciech Hubert Zurek, 9–49. Princeton University Press, 1983.

(2) Einstein, Albert. Relativity: The Special and the General Theory. Bonanza Books, 1961, Appendix V, p. 139.

(3) Einstein, Albert. 2002. The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein, Volume 7: The Berlin Years: Writings, 1918-1921. Princeton University Press, p. 136 [Doc. 31].

(4) Bohr, Niels. 1998. Causality and Complementarity: Supplementary Papers. Ox Bow Press, p. 27.

(5) Wheeler, John Archibald. “Law Without Law.” In Quantum Theory and Measurement, edited by John Archibald Wheeler and Wojciech Hubert Zurek, 182-213. Princeton University Press, 1983, p. 194.

(6) Feynman's Lectures, Volume 2, Section 15-5. (

(7) Maxwell's Treatise, Volume 2, Chapters 10 and 20.

(8) Maxwell, James Clerk. “VIII. A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 155 (January 1, 1865): 459–512. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstl.1865.0008, p. 486.

(9) Einstein, Albert. 1997. “The Formal Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity.” In The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein, Volume 6: The Berlin Years: Writings, 1914-1917, translated by Alfred Engel, 30–84. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, Section C.

(10) Maxwell, 1865, p. 487.

(11) Bohr, Niels. 1987. Atomic Theory and the Description of Nature. Ox Bow Press, p. 16.

Lee Smolin Curt Jaimungal Brian Keating Sabine Hossenfelder Neil Turok Dr. Steven Greer