Patterns in the fabric of nature

From classical mechanics to quantum field theory, the physical facts at one point in space are held to be independent of those at other points in space. I propose that we can usefully challenge this orthodoxy in order to explain otherwise puzzling correlations at both cosmological and microscopic scales.
Comment: Submission to the 2012 FQXi essay contest "Which of Our Basic Physical Assumptions Are Wrong?". 11 pages including figures and references. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:0812.0349