Book

Gianfranco Spavieri
Professor of physics

As knowledge expands, the challenge of scientific literature is not only to transmit and communicate in a comprehensive manner but also to present information in a thought-stimulating way.
This challenge is met cleanly in Vol. 2 of the Ether space-time & cosmology series, thanks to the editors appropriate choice of an appealing layout and the judicious selection of both contributors and subjects.
In the context of modern physics, the interpretation of relativity has evolved dramatically. Ignoring this important evolution, most scientists still see a conflict between the Lorentz-Poincar? formulation - based on a preferred ether rest frame - and the Einstein-Minkowski formulations. However, as John Bell pointed out in 1988, the designation of a superior view is no longer apt: "...although there is a stringent `difference in philosophy' between both views, the facts of physics do not oblige us to accept one philosophy rather than the other."
With this sentence Bell recognizes the equivalence of the predictive power of both theories. In contrast, even if this power has proved, until a certain point, broadly equivalent, from a realistic point of view the investigation of their differences deserves to be addressed, for two reasons: 1- A more exact knowledge of the constitution of the physical world and 2- Because its consequences can be essential for the development of physics.
The authors are engaged in the exploration of the modern ether concept and provide evidence of its reality and implications. In 1934 Einstein himself argues that " ...(gravitational) fields are physical states of space and that physical space and ether are only different terms for the same thing".
Furthermore, in a response to Infeld, Dirac declared: "Infeld has shown how the field equations of my new electrodynamics can be written so as not to require an aether. This is not sufficient to make a complete dynamical theory. It is necessary to set up an action principle and to get a Hamiltonian formulation of the equations suitable for quantization purposes, and for this the aether velocity is required" (Dirac 1952).
Although the concept of ether differs for Einstein and Dirac it is worth to be remarked that, contrary to what is often believed, both physicists regard the existence of a substratum as a necessity.
Traditionally relativity theory has met with difficulties and paradoxes (e.g., the twin paradox) that fortunately disappear with the ether formulation of the theory.
Thus, the stimulating program offered by Ether space-time & cosmology aims at passing the message to a broader audience by proposing solutions based on the modern ether concept, which in turn is directly linked with the Physical Vacuum, Quantum Mechanics and Cosmology.

Comment: a 5 star book