Hey, nomad!
This is kind of a "special interest" topic but I thought I post it anyway. I read a book called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1858600197/qid=1098463158/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-8009657-8907828?v=glance&s=books">THE VORTEX - Key To Future Science by David Ash&Peter Hewitt</a>. It talks about Scottish scientist Lord Kelvin's (William Thomson) 1867 Vortex Theory of Atoms.
Supposedly, this theory was so elegant and simple - and above all, it explained the atom very well - that it was the accepted theory until Einstein came and ruined the party.
This is the website of one of the authors of that book, David Ash. He is very polite towards Einstein ;-), I suppose he's not that stupid. But he explains the basics of the theory there. I read the book The Vortex and found it very interesting and intriguing, although I have to say I reserve myself in regards to some of the things said, since I don't have the knowledge to verify their claims. Nevertheless, it's a fascinating theory.

Lord Kelvin
<a href="http://www.quantum-vortex.com/quantum_vortex/quantum_vortex_6.htm">The Quantum Vortex</a>