Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2021/ii/paper-1/9b/b/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2021 ii Paper 1 9B b Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-09-25
The elementary Newtonian derivation of the Friedmann equation follows a test particle on the boundary of a finite expanding sphere. It therefore introduces a distinguished centre and can misleadingly suggest that all matter expands away from one origin.
The fluid derivation is local: the Euler equation and Poisson equation must be compatible in every comoving neighbourhood. It consequently describes a genuinely homogeneous infinite universe, in which every comoving observer sees the same Hubble flow, without selecting a physical centre. This is the improvement captured by the Newtonian fluid derivation of the Raychaudhuri equation.
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