The vacuum is the glue that keeps the universe together. It has also been shown that the atomic building blocks of matter are dependent upon the Zero Point Energy (ZPE) for their very existence. This was clearly demonstrated by Dr. Hal Puthoff of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Austin, Texas. In Physical Review D, vol. 35:10, and later in New Scientist (28 July 1990), Puthoff started by pointing out an anomaly. According to classical concepts, an electron in orbit around a proton should be radiating energy. As a consequence, as it loses energy, it should spiral into the atomic nucleus, causing the whole structure to disappear in a flash of light. But that does not happen. When you ask a physicist why it does not happen, you will be told it is because of Bohr's quantum condition. This quantum condition states that electrons in specific orbits around the nucleus do not radiate energy. But if you ask why not, or alternatively, if you ask why the classical laws of electromagnetics are violated in this way, the reply may give the impression of being less than satisfactory.
See:Harold E. Puthoff, "Everything for nothing", New Scientist, pp.36-39, 28 July 1990. http://www.ldolphin.org/everything.html Instead of ignoring the known laws of physics, Puthoff approached this problem with the assumption that the classical laws of electro-magnetics were valid, and that the electron is therefore losing energy as it speeds in its orbit around the nucleus. He also accepted the experimental evidence for the existence of the ZPE in the form of randomly fluctuating electromagnetic fields or waves. He calculated the power the electron lost as it moved in its orbit, and then calculated the power that the electron gained from the ZPF. The two turned out to be identical; the loss was exactly made up for by the gain. It was like a child on a swing: just as the swing started to slow, it was given another push to keep it going. Puthoff then concluded that without the ZPF inherent within the vacuum, every atom in the universe would undergo instantaneous collapse. In other words, the ZPE is maintaining all atomic structures throughout the entire cosmos. When a magnetic beam of sufficient strength falls on the vacuum that contain atoms, that vacuum is distorted when electromagnetic properties of the vacuum are changed. This disrupts those atoms in many ways including how pions are formed from the vacuum between protons and neutron; how the strong force behaves inside the proton and neutron and how electrons obit the nucleus.
