modern physics of a particulate aether. However, Dirac's aether hypothesis was motivated by his dissatisfaction with quantum electrodynamics, and it never gained support from the mainstream scientific community. Physicist Robert B. Laughlin wrote: Pilot waves Louis de Broglie stated, "Any particle, ever isolated, has to be imagined as in continuous "energetic contact" with a hidden medium." However, as de Broglie pointed out, this medium "could not serve as a universal reference medium, as this would be contrary to relativity theory." See also Absolute space and time Apeiron (cosmology) Frame-dragging Tests of special relativity Tests of general relativity Cosmology References Further reading Oliver Lodge, "Ether", Encyclopædia Britannica, Thirteenth Edition (1926). "A Ridiculously Brief History of Electricity and Magnetism; Mostly from E. T. Whittaker’s A History of the Theories of Aether and Electricity". (PDF format) Epple, M. (1998) "Topology, Matter, and Space, I: Topological Notions in 19th-Century Natural Philosophy", Archive for History of Exact Sciences 52: 297–392. Vacuum