Vector Fields and Hydrodynamics
Program 136
At first glance, replacing the old idea of
action at a distance by the new idea of the field of force seems to be an
exercise in semantics. But it isn't, because fields have definite properties of
their own which are eminently suitable for scientific study. For example,
electric fields are different in form from magnetic fields, and both kinds can
better be understood by analogy to fields of fluid flow.