Historical Timeline — Earliest to Latest
Scope: contributions that tie gravity and/or geometry to a refractive, density-dependent background index or variable-c optics. Dates and attributions are approximate where appropriate.
Heuristic Refractive Density Index vs. Year · 1600 → 2025
Index (0–100, author’s assessment)
| Year | Thinker | Concept | Score / 100 | Descriptor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1604 | Johannes Kepler | Light slows in denser media; early gradient-optics intuition. | 10 | Continuous-medium seed. |
| 1637 | René Descartes | Mechanical aether; refraction from density/pressure. | 15 | First physical-medium picture. |
| 1657 | Pierre de Fermat | Least time: δ∫n(x) ds = 0. | 40 | Variational optics core. |
| 1672–1704 | Isaac Newton | Variable aether density ↔ gravity; slower light in potential. | 55 | First ψ-like gravitational intuition. |
| 1690 | Christiaan Huygens | Wavefront propagation; speed set by medium. | 35 | Optical-metric wave model. |
| 1818–1823 | A.–J. Fresnel | Ether drag; medium-dependent velocity. | 45 | Continuum mechanics refinement. |
| 1853 | Bernhard Riemann | Variable-c scalar gravity from energy density. | 75 | Direct refractive-gravity precursor. |
| 1865 | James Clerk Maxwell | c = 1/√(ε₀μ₀); field energy defines the effective optical medium. | 70 | Formal refractive-field physics. |
| 1870s | Lord Kelvin (Thomson) | Vortex-atom elastic-ether models. | 35 | Ambitious but unstable mechanics. |
| 1905–1908 | Henri Poincaré | Relativistic optics; geometry–light correspondence. | 60 | Bridge to spacetime optics. |
| 1911–1912 | Albert Einstein | Variable-c gravity; n ≈ 1 − 2Φ/c². | 85 | Near-complete refractive-gravity prototype. |
| 1923 | W. Gordon | Optical metric in moving media. | 65 | Mathematical unification. |
| 1957 | R. H. Dicke | Variable “constants” via a scalar refractive potential. | 80 | Operational ψ-field analogue. |
| 1970–1990s | Puthoff, Rañada, Evans, … | Polarizable-vacuum / scalar-refractive ideas. | 60 | Heuristic and incomplete. |
| 2000–2020 | Unruh, Visser, Leonhardt, … | Analog-gravity optics; controlled n(x) metrics in the laboratory. | 75 | Operational confirmations. |
| 2024– | Gary Alcock — DFD | Scalar ψ with n = eψ; energy-normalized, laboratory-testable field equations. | 100 | Refractive-density completion candidate with explicit falsifiers. |
Read as a 400-year arc from intuition → variational optics → refractive gravity → a ψ-field completion candidate formulated with explicit laboratory tests.
Ranking — Conceptual Completeness (Highest → Lowest)
Scores define a heuristic “Refractive Density Index”: how fully each framework addresses gravity and light via a refractive, density-dependent background index. They are author-assigned and intended only as a comparative guide, not as a statement of historical or scientific merit.
| Rank | Thinker (Year) | Score / 100 | Descriptor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gary Alcock — DFD (2024–) | 100 | Refractive-density completion candidate with explicit energy bookkeeping and falsifiable laboratory protocols. |
| 2 | Albert Einstein (1911–1912) | 85 | Variable-c refractive gravity prototype recovering the classic optical tests. |
| 3 | R. H. Dicke (1957) | 80 | Scalar-refractive constant-variation model with an operational focus on experiments. |
| 4 | Bernhard Riemann (1853) | 75 | Variable-c scalar gravity explicitly tied to energy density. |
| 5 | Unruh / Visser / Leonhardt (2000–2020) | 75 | Analog-gravity optics; controlled n(x) metrics realized in the laboratory. |
| 6 | James Clerk Maxwell (1865) | 70 | Permittivity and permeability determine light speed; field-energy medium underpinning modern optics. |
| 7 | W. Gordon (1923) | 65 | Formal optical metric for light propagation in moving media. |
| 8 | Henri Poincaré (1905–1908) | 60 | Geometry–optics bridge that anticipates relativistic treatments of light. |
| 9 | Puthoff / Rañada / Evans (1970–1990) | 60 | Heuristic polarizable-vacuum and scalar-vacuum proposals with refractive flavor. |
| 10 | Isaac Newton (1672–1704) | 55 | Aether density qualitatively linked to both gravity and refraction. |
| 11 | A.–J. Fresnel (1818–1823) | 45 | Medium-dependent ether drag and partial entrainment effects. |
| 12 | Pierre de Fermat (1657) | 40 | Least-time variational optics formulated in terms of n(x). |
| 13 | Christiaan Huygens (1690) | 35 | Wavefront speed gradients in a continuous medium. |
| 14 | Lord Kelvin (1870s) | 35 | Vortex-atom elastic-ether picture with limited stability. |
| 15 | René Descartes (1637) | 15 | Mechanical-medium intuition for refraction and density. |
| 16 | Johannes Kepler (1604) | 10 | Earliest refractive-density intuition for light propagation. |
Read as “distance from a fully articulated refractive density field theory with explicit tests,” rather than as an absolute measure of scientific impact.