I.
In physics,     action at a distance
is the concept that an object can be moved,
changed,     or otherwise affected
without being physically touched
as in mechanical contact by another object.
That is, it is the nonlocal interaction
of objects separated in space;
II.
The term was used in the context
of early theories of gravity and
electromagnetism to describe how
an object responds to the influence
of distant objects. For example,
the early Coulomb's law and the law
of universal gravitation;
III.
More generally "action at a distance" describes
the failure of early atomistic and mechanistic theories
to reduce all physical interaction to collisions
[thus truly ending the Stone Age]; The exploration
and resolution of this problematic phenomenon
leading to significant developments in modern physics;
from the concept of a field, to descriptions
of quantum entanglement & the mediator particles
of the Standard Model