2. Newton's Absolute Space: The Background Stage as a Physical Entity
In his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, Newton defined absolute space as: "Its own nature, without reference to anything external, always remains homogeneous and immovable." This description is often criticized as metaphysical, but when reinterpreted from the perspective of modern physics, it accurately depicts the characteristics a physical vacuum background should possess:
2.1 Material Independence and Temporal Invariance: Absolute space does not alter its intrinsic properties based on the matter within it. It exists prior to and independent of any local physical processes.
2.2 Non-viscous and Incompressible: This implies it offers no dissipative resistance to any object or perturbation moving through it, and its "density" or fundamental structure is unchangeable. This is analogous to the ground state of a superfluid.
2.3 Isotropy: The laws of physics are consistent at all points and in all directions within it, providing the foundation for the universality of physical laws.
These characteristics are not philosophical fantasies but prerequisites for the validity of physical laws. Without such a stable, homogeneous background, the law of inertia and the conservation of energy and momentum would lose their meaning. Absolute space, therefore, is not an "empty" container, but a fundamental entity with specific physical properties—the ultimate "stage" of the universe.
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