The principle postulate of general relativity appears to be that curved space or curved spacetime is gravitational, in that mass curves the spacetime around it, and that this curved spacetime acts on mass in a manner we call gravity. Here, I use the theory of special relativity to show that curved spacetime can be non-gravitational, by showing that curve-linear space or curved spacetime can be observed without exerting a gravitational force on mass to induce motion- as well as showing gravity can be observed without spacetime curvature. This is done using the principles of special relativity in accordance with Einstein to satisfy the reader, using a gravitational equivalence model. Curved spacetime may appear to affect the apparent relative position and dimensions of a mass, as well as the relative time experienced by a mass, but it does not exert gravitational force (gravity) on mass. Thus, this paper explains why there appears to be more gravity in the universe than mass to account for it, because gravity is not the resultant of the curvature of spacetime on mass, thus the “dark matter†and “dark energy†we are looking for to explain this excess gravity doesn’t exist.
Erratum: Nonequilibrium inflaton dynamics and reheating: Back reaction of parametric particle creation and curved spacetime effects [Phys. Rev. D56, 678 (1997)]