principle of least action

British  

noun

1. Also called: Maupertuis principle.  the principle that motion between any two points in a conservative dynamical system is such that the action has a minimum value with respect to all paths between the points that correspond to the same energy

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Example Sentences

These are bold, thought-provoking pieces that tackle everything from the physical principle of least action to the mathematics of the infinitely great and infinitesimally small.

From Nature • Jul. 17, 2018

In finding the abutment reactions some principle such as the principle of least action must be used, and some assumptions of doubtful validity made.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Part 3 "Brescia" to "Bulgaria" by Various

In particular he explained the principle of least action, first advanced by P. L. M. de Maupertuis, and developed by Sir W. R. Hamilton, of quaternion fame.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 2 "Hearing" to "Helmond" by Various

Helmholtz endeavoured to construct a mechanics based on the idea of energy and its conservation, but he had to invoke a second law, the principle of least action.

From The New Physics and Its Evolution by Poincaré, Lucien

Helmholtz, in a justly celebrated theory, endeavoured to fit the principle of Carnot into the principle of least action; but the difficulties regarding the mechanical interpretation of the irreversibility of physical phenomena remain entire.

From The New Physics and Its Evolution by Poincaré, Lucien