The roots of scalar-tensor theory: an approximate history

Abstract

Why are there no fundamental scalar fields actually observed in physics today? Scalars are the simplest fields, but once we go beyond Galilean-Newtonian physics they appear only in speculations, as possible determinants of the gravitational constants in the so-called Scalar-Tensor theories in non-quantum physics, and as Higgs particles, dilatons, etc., in quantum physics. Actually, scalar fields have had a long and controversial life in gravity theories, with a history of deaths and resurrections. This paper presents a brief overview of this history.

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