3.1 The Postulates
In 1959 Dewey Bernard Larson (1898 – 1990), an American chemical engineer, self-published the first of eight books explaining what he called “The Reciprocal System” (RS). Gradually, his students began to publish their own research in “Reciprocity”, a quarterly journal dedicated to Larson’s theory, since not one mainstream journal would ever publish his ideas.
Unlike any other theory, Larson claims that all his predictions are made from first principles which are contained in two fundamental postulates :
“1.The physical universe is composed of one component, motion, existing in three dimensions, in discrete units, and with two reciprocal aspects, space and time.
2. The physical universe conforms to the relations of ordinary commutative mathematics, its primary magnitudes are absolute, and its geometry is Euclidean”
Larson’s claim may well be true, but, as I can personally testify, the postulates are of little help to the beginning student, especially one schooled in conventional science. What is needed is a simple set of visuals, calculations, and examples to fully comprehend his theory. However, once you get a real taste of RS you will come under its spell, and wonder why something so simple, yet so profound, took so long to be discovered.
3.2 Scalar Motion
Larson’s first postulate says that the sole content of the universe is motion. But what kind of motion? It turns out that what Larson is really talking about is scalar motion (scalar motion has magnitude but not direction). But what does it really look like? Larson replies that scalar motion is radial in all directions, like the expansion of the universe or the light from a light bulb. It has no specific direction because it is in all directions. But, Larson is quick to add, scalar motion does in fact have two directions, inward and outward.
Larson claims that scalar motion, although recognized in science, is completely misunderstood. In fact, he says, “the fundamental forces of nature” are, in reality, “the properties of distributed scalar motion” , distributed over three dimensions, as electric, magnetic and gravitational forces. The strong and weak nuclear forces, Larson says, are “hypothetical”. Nevertheless, Larson claims, that given his postulates, the math of existing theory requires relatively minor modification and is, by and large, correct. Hence, the noticeable lack of mathematics in his writing.
The closest Larson comes to humor is when he tries to explain this strange situation. Larson notes the usual analogies to scalar motion: spots on an expanding balloon, “or perhaps some kind of transparent expanding plastic ball, with visible spots scattered throughout it’s volume…Such motion is by definition, scalar..[the reason the details of scalar motion have not been recognized is] not because they are hidden or elusive but because no one has looked for them. This, in turn, has been due to the lack of any clear indication that they might have a significant impact on physical understanding. After all, expanding balloons and plastic balls play no major part in physical activity…the same reason that men climb mountains – just because they are there to be climbed – but small mountains get scant attention.”
However, understanding Larson’s postulates and their consequences is no easy task. Dr. K.V.K. Nehru, a brilliant student of Larson, makes this statement to a fellow student in 1990. “To be sure we do have other examples of drastic paradigm changes in the history of science to which contemporary thinkers reacted with bitter resentment. The change from the geocentric to the heliocentric view, the introduction of the quantum of action by Planck, are some examples. But I daresay that there was no parallel in recorded history matching in profundity and scope, to the paradigm shift entailed by RS. So let us not underestimate our difficulty.”
3.3 The Progression
The most basic outward scalar motion is the “expansion of the universe” which Larson calls “the progression”. The speed of the progression is c, the speed of light, or in natural units: 1/1. This speed, unity, forms the basic datum of the universe, which Larson calls the natural reference system. All variations, (Larson uses the term “displacements”) are measured from one, not from zero. All outward scalar motion proceeds away from one. Conversely, all inward motion proceeds toward one.
It is vital to understand that both time and space progress to produce a constant speed of one in each dimension:
1/1, 2/2,3/3,4/4…= always equals unity
The consequence of this logic is that the progression of time nullifies the progression of space such that the start points of successive units of the progression are the same. We must banish from our minds the idea of a setting in which this occurs. According to the postulate only discrete units of motion comprise the universe
3.4 Gravity
Larson claims that gravity is inward scalar rotation in three dimensions which opposes
the progression.” Scalar rotation”, he says, “differs from inherently vectorial rotation
in that it involves a translational inward movement as well as the purely rotational
movement…The inward motion in all directions is gravitation and the rotating [atoms
and particles] are the objects that gravitate.” Dimensionally gravity is (s/t)3 whereas
inertial mass (t/s)3 is the exact reciprocal, which gives the well known equivalence:
1. Gravitational Mass = Inertial Mass ∴ Gravity/Inertia = 1
2. (s/t)3 = (t/s)3 ∴ (s/t)3/(t/s)3 = (t/s)3 (s/t)3 = 1
From this idea Newton’s inverse square law remains mostly intact but the mystery of
why gravity is instantaneous and cannot be screened off dissolves: gravity is strictly a
function of aggregates moving independently. Also, the idea of gravitational limits appears and Hubble’s law becomes a function based on local aggregates, which is why it’s consistent measurement is so elusive.