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Equation 40 · A Horizon Is a Toll Booth, Not a Loophole

What does this equation mean?

dτ=f(r) dtd\tau = \sqrt{f(r)}\,dt

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Inputs and operationssqrtf(r)dt
Result or conditiondτ
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This equation states an equality: the expressions on both sides have the same value under the article’s assumptions. Read the equation part by part below; each part has a contextual explanation and a link to its mathematical background.

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dd

Symbol d

d is part of the quantity the equation computes from the expression on the right.

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τ\tau

Symbol τ

τ is part of the quantity the equation computes from the expression on the right.

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ff

Symbol f

f is an input to the expression that computes the quantity on the left.

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rr

Symbol r

r is an input to the expression that computes the quantity on the left.

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tt

Symbol t

t is an input to the expression that computes the quantity on the left.

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=

=

The expressions on both sides represent the same quantity under the stated assumptions.

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√

√

Take a square root.

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How to interpret it

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What the article says around this equation

For a static observer at fixed areal radius r in a static, spherically symmetric spacetime, proper time and coordinate time are related by dτ\tau = f(r)\sqrt{f(r)}\,dt , with f(r) = 1-2GM/(rc2c^2) for Schwarzschild. A locally conserved (Killing) energy E∞E_\infty — the energy the same quantity would be assigned by a distant static observer — and the energy measured by the local static observer, ElocE_{\rm loc} , are related by the standard blueshift-on-the-way-down relation

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