Maupertuis's principle
PRINCIPLE OF LEAST LENGTH IN PHYSICS
Maupertuis principle; Maupertius' principle; Maupertius principle; Maupertuis’s principle; Maupertuis' principle
In classical mechanics, Maupertuis's principle (named after Pierre Louis Maupertuis) states that the path followed by a physical system is the one of least length (with a suitable interpretation of path and length). It is a special case of the more generally stated principle of least action.