On the relevance of the coupling model to experiments

The research field of the glass transition is experimentally driven. There is an abundance of experimental data and facts accumulated in the past as well as the emergence of important new results every now and then. Therefore, when judging theories and models of the glass transition, it is fair to ask the question of their relevance to experiments. This question was one of the themes of a round-table discussion session entitled An assessment of current theories: interconnections and relevance to experiments, organized at the 4th Workshop on Non-equilibrium Phenomena in Supercooled Fluids, Glasses and Amorphous Materials (4th WNEP). The coupling model has a history of making connections of its theoretical results with many experimental facts on dynamics of glassforming substances. This characteristic of the coupling model is demonstrated herein by using it to explain or rationalize some of the new experimental data reported at the 4th WNEP and published in this volume and elsewhere.