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Equation 44 · A Horizon Is a Toll Booth, Not a Loophole

What does this equation mean?

Eloc=E∞f(r),so thatEloc dτ=E∞ dt.E_{\rm loc} = \frac{E_\infty}{\sqrt{f(r)}}, \qquad\text{so that}\qquad E_{\rm loc}\,d\tau = E_\infty\,dt.

Read the formula alongside the article passage below. Each part has a deeper page with its role in the equation, the supporting passage and nearby citations.

Start withE_infty
Divide bysqrtf(r)
This relates toE_rm loc
How to read the two sides of this formula. Follow the article passage for the meaning of each quantity.

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.

Read it piece by piece

ElocE_{\rm loc}

Symbol E_rm loc

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

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E∞E_\infty

Symbol E_infty

EiE_infty occurs above the fraction bar. The numerator is divided by the entire denominator below it.

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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 occurs below the fraction bar. The quantity above the bar is divided by this expression; zero is excluded as a denominator.

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dd

Symbol d

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

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τ\tau

Symbol τ

τ 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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fraction

fraction

Divide the expression above the line by the one below it.

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√

√

Take a square root.

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subscript

subscript

The lower label selects a particular version, component, or indexed member of the quantity. For example, x₀ and xₜ can be values at different positions.

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f(r)\sqrt{f(r)}

Denominator: sqrtf(r)

The complete quantity below the fraction bar; it must be nonzero for this division.

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How to interpret it

With a fixed numerator, increasing a nonzero denominator reduces the fraction. Read it with the definitions, units, and assumptions supplied by the article.

What the article says around this equation

​ d t , 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 Eloc=E∞f(r),so thatEloc dτ=E∞ dtE_{\rm loc} = \frac{E_\infty}{\sqrt{f(r)}}, \qquad\text{so that}\qquad E_{\rm loc}\,d\tau = E_\infty\,dt. That second identity is the entire resolution in miniature, and it is worth deriving N⊥N_\perp[Γ\Gamma] both ways to see it operate. Hold the local energy budget fixed at ElocE_{\rm loc}=E0E_0' (a battery physically at the processor, delivering a fixed amount of locally measured energy) over a proper interval Δ\Deltaτ\tau :

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