Projective Process Monism

A Topological Framework for Fundamental Constants, Gravity, and Consciousness

Framework Introduction

The Problem

The Standard Model — our most precisely tested theory — requires 25 constants whose values must be entered by hand. The mass of the electron, the strength of the electromagnetic force, the rate at which quarks decay. No theory predicts them. Change most of them slightly and the universe cannot form stars, cannot sustain chemistry, cannot permit complexity. Why these numbers and not others? Physics has no answer.

The second problem is older and stranger. Quantum mechanics predicts outcomes through a rule — probability equals the square of the wave function — with extraordinary precision. It cannot say why that rule has this form, or what physically constitutes a measurement. The moment quantum possibility becomes definite fact has no explanation in the theory that depends on it.

These two problems have been treated as separate for nearly a century. PPM proposes they share a common origin — and that origin is the geometry of conscious experience.

One Axiom

In 2017, Rudrauf et al. showed through systematic phenomenological analysis that conscious experience has a specific mathematical shape: real projective 3-space, RP³. Their model's predictions have been experimentally validated against human perceptual data.

PPM takes this as a physical boundary condition. If the universe is to contain observers — beings for whom measurements occur and facts become definite — its laws must be compatible with RP³ structure. This single constraint propagates through the mathematics — fixing the form of quantum probability, the energy hierarchy, and the values of physical constants.

What Follows

The Born rule is derived, not postulated The probability rule underlying all of quantum mechanics — P = |ψ|² — is the unique rule compatible with observer geometry.
19 particle physics constants, calculated Particle masses, force strengths, mixing angles — the numbers that the Standard Model takes as given are instead determined by the geometry, with 5% average error.
Gravity and the expansion rate of the universe The strength of gravity, the cosmological constant, and the Hubble constant all emerge from the same geometric structure.
A testable account of consciousness If RP³ is the geometry of experience, its topological signature — a specific Z₂ invariant — should appear in neural dynamics during conscious states and vanish during unconsciousness. This can be tested now, using persistent homology on existing brain-imaging data.

No new particles. No extra dimensions. No modifications to existing field equations.

Falsifiable Predictions

These are not curve fits to known data. Each follows from a single geometric starting point. Each can be disproved by experiment.

Gravitational evolution G(z) ∝ (1+z)^3/2 The framework predicts that gravity weakens over cosmic time. This explains why the James Webb Space Telescope is finding impossibly massive galaxies in the early universe — they formed faster because gravity was stronger then.

Expansion rate of the universe H₀ = 70.9 km/s/Mpc Cosmologists measuring the expansion rate get two conflicting answers depending on the method — the "Hubble tension." The framework derives a specific value from geometry that predicts this discrepancy.

Strong CP problem θ_QCD = 0 exactly The strong force should violate a fundamental symmetry called CP, but experimentally it doesn't — a major open problem. The framework's geometry forbids the violation outright, requiring no new particles or fine-tuning.

Fine structure constant α = 1/(137.6 ± 1.3) The fine structure constant governs how atoms hold together and how light interacts with matter. The framework predicts its value from geometry plus two measured cosmological quantities. Central error: 0.4%.

Dark matter candidate Sterile neutrino, 6–14 keV The framework predicts a specific dark matter particle at a specific mass. That particle would produce a 3.5 keV X-ray signal — matching an anomalous line already observed in galaxy cluster spectra.

Neutrino CP violation δ_CP = π(1 − 1/φ) The phase governing matter-antimatter asymmetry in neutrino oscillations. Predicted: 1.200 rad. Observed: 1.20 ± 0.08 rad. Upcoming experiments (DUNE, Hyper-K) will test this to higher precision.