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Predictions of general relativity turn out to be obscure and difficult to test.  The two most famous predictions were the bending of light in a gravitational field and the precession of the perihelia of orbiting planets.

Predictions of general relativity turn out to be obscure and difficult to test.  The two most famous predictions were the bending of light in a gravitational field and the precession of the perihelia of orbiting planets.

*The first of these was famously tested during a total eclipse in 1919.  That test was somewhat muddled by an incorrect initial calculation, by several people including Einstein himself, of what the effect would be, and some "cherry picking" of the data to be used.<ref>''Einstein's Luck'', John Waller, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-860719-9</ref>  The data selection could be considered "manipulation" or "fudging", by a person (Arthur Eddington) who had a personal stake in the outcome.  His analysis techniques would not pass muster today.

*The first of these was famously tested during a total eclipse in 1919.  That test was somewhat muddled by an incorrect initial calculation, by several people including Einstein himself, of what the effect would be, and some "cherry picking" of the data to be used.<ref>''Einstein's Luck'', John Waller, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-860719-9</ref>  The data selection could be considered "manipulation" or "fudging", by a person (Arthur Eddington) who had a personal stake in the outcome.  His analysis techniques would not pass muster today. The announcement of this test, flawed though it was, made Einstein the household name that he has been ever since.<ref>[http://einstein.stanford.edu/Library/images/lightsAllAskewBig.jpg The New York Times, Nov. 10, 1919]</ref><ref>[https://www.worldbooklearning.com/how-did-an-eclipse-help-make-albert-einstein-famous/ How did an eclipse help make Albert Einstein famous]</ref><ref>[https://blog.supplysideliberal.com/post/44934715350/how-albert-einstein-became-a-celebrity How Albert Einstein became a celebrity]</ref><ref>[https://www.sciencealert.com/general-relativity-experiment-confirms-accuracy-for-galaxies "The public's mind was blown by the results, effectively turning Albert Einstein into a household name and cementing the concept of general relativity into physics books."]</ref>

:It should be noted that pre-relativistic (Newtonian) physics may also predict a bending, of half the observed value, depending on whether one uses the 17th century "corpuscular" formulation or the 19th century "wave" formulation.

:It should be noted that pre-relativistic (Newtonian) physics may also predict a bending, of half the observed value, depending on whether one uses the 17th century "corpuscular" formulation or the 19th century "wave" formulation.