  We analyze the results for infinite nuclear and neutron matter using the
standard relativistic mean field model and its recent effective field theory
motivated generalization. For the first time, we show quantitatively that the
inclusion in the effective theory of vector meson self-interactions and
scalar-vector cross-interactions explains naturally the recent experimental
observations of the softness of the nuclear equation of state, without losing
the advantages of the standard relativistic model for finite nuclei.
