SDT Corpus

Structural Determination Theory (SDT) is a single-axiom meta-structural metaphysical framework derived from one ontological commitment: reality consists of distinctly differentiated structure. From this axiom, SDT develops a formal apparatus addressing reality, time, irreversibility, space, and quantum phenomena, without borrowing from any specific physical theory.

This site is the working-version home of the SDT corpus. Stable, citable versions are archived at PhilArchive. See versioning policy for the relation between site and PhilArchive.

The Axiom

Reality consists of distinctly differentiated structure.

From this single commitment, SDT derives a formal apparatus comprising elements ( $E$ ), possible configurations ( $P$ ), constraint systems ( $C$ ), the global meta-structural rule ( $G$ ), the realized-structure set ( $R$ ), the admissible-configuration set ( $A$ ), structural layers ( $L$ ), determination events ( $D$ ), traces ( $τ$ ), and the determination dependency graph ( $G_{D}$ ). Three core arguments follow: $R$ non-retraction (Argument 1), $G$ constancy (Argument 2), and time emergence from $G_{D}$ ‘s partial-order growth (Argument 3).

Papers

The SDT corpus consists of fifteen papers grouped into five clusters.

Status legend: stable = archived at PhilArchive, citable · working = stable version on this site, ready to read · draft = active revision in progress · planned = forthcoming.

Foundation

SDT v5.9 stable — The main document. Single-axiom framework with eleven core concepts, four-type determination classification, three core arguments, and the derived status of spatial distance. Published at PhilArchive.
SDT v6.0 draft — Streamlined revision of v5.9. Removes external-application illustrations (handled by series papers) and strengthens the axiom’s self-refutation argument, anticipated objections, and meta-theoretical positioning.
Matrix v5.9 planned — Mathematical certification of v5.9 with thirty theorems.
GD v1.0 planned — Graph-theoretic formalization of $G_{D}$ with axioms G1–G5, chain-pair geometry, sheaf-theoretic Kochen–Specker no-obstruction.

Core Applications

Quantum v4.1 planned — Thirty-five quantum foundational problems addressed via the meta-structural framework, plus dialogue with eleven interpretive stances.
Causation Range planned — Five foundational claims on causation: structural causation is irreducible, ontologically prior to time, and modal-structural rather than probabilistic.
Time as Mediator planned — The Problem of Time dissolved at the meta-level. QM and GR time as two projections of one underlying meta-level temporal structure.
Three Dimensions of Categorical Priority planned — SDT vs Loop Quantum Gravity, Causal Set Theory, and String Theory on background independence, grounds of discreteness, and category placement.

Philosophical Applications

Time Philosophy Systematic Failure planned — The century-long debate in time philosophy diagnosed as resting on shared unfounded primitives.
Bounded Free Will planned — Consciousness is structure; the two-layer determination structure of conscious evolution; the three-aspect refutation-form argument for bounded free will.
Distributed Identity planned — Synchronic and diachronic identity as distributed across $R$ , $T$ , and $G_{D}$ .
Biology Identification planned — Twelve necessary and sufficient graph-theoretic conditions identifying biological organisms in $G_{D}$ .
Consciousness Identification planned — Sixteen necessary and sufficient conditions for consciousness identification with three extensions and a cross-chain personal identity criterion.

AI Application

Range Control planned — Why probabilistic frameworks necessarily separate AI alignment and safety, and how range-based foundations unify them through a single design choice.

Physics-Theorem Layer

SDT-KS No-Obstruction planned — Sheaf-theoretic no-obstruction theorem on $G_{D}^{LSO}$ .
SDT-No-Cloning planned — Use exclusivity (G5) implies the no-cloning theorem under SDT-to-QM mapping.

Reading Paths

Different readers will benefit from different entry points. See Reading Map for recommendations.

About

This corpus is developed by Xiaozhou Zeng (Leo), an independent researcher based in Nancy, France. ORCID: 0009-0001-8244-7329.

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