# Why did Einstein Reject the November Tensor in 1912-1913, only to Come Back to it in November 1915?

## TL;DR

This paper re-examines Einstein's changing views on the November tensor between 1912 and 1915, analyzing historical interpretations and proposing a new understanding of his reasoning process.

## Contribution

It offers a new combined conjecture explaining Einstein's initial rejection and later acceptance of the November tensor, clarifying his conceptual development.

## Key findings

- Einstein initially rejected the November tensor in 1912.
- He recognized it as a natural generalization of Newton's law by 1915.
- A new conjecture explains the delayed recognition of the tensor's significance.

## Abstract

The question of Einstein's rejection of the November tensor is re-examined in light of conflicting answers by several historians. I discuss these conflicting conjectures in view of three questions that should inform our thinking: Why did Einstein reject the November tensor in 1912, only to come back to it in 1915? Why was it hard for Einstein to recognize that the November tensor is a natural generalization of Newton's law of gravitation? Why did it take him three years to realize that the November tensor is not incompatible with Newton's law? I first briefly describe Einstein's work in the Zurich Notebook. I then discuss a number of interpretive conjectures formulated by historians and what may be inferred from them. Finally, I offer a new combined conjecture that answers the above questions.

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Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/1904.02008