ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses about three topics. The first is to review yet again the standard model of elementary particles and forces. This standard model summarizes a fantastic amount of progress made in the last twenty years in our understanding of the basic building blocks of matter and the basic forces in nature. The second goal of the chapter is to connect the standard model with the early universe, the "big bang". The third goal, to which the title refers, is to highlight the emerging importance as time goes on of the vacuum state. By the vacuum state, the "new ether" discusses starts a few femtoseconds. This is a long time after the start for contemporary particle theorists; this is a very conservative talk. The particle theorist's talks about vacuum in the same language as used by the condensed matter people: condensates, order parameters, etc. It is as if the vacuum really is physical, that there is dynamics associated with it.
