Distinction Theory: A General Theory of Finite Systems

Distinction Theory: A General Theory of Finite SystemsFrom the First Distinction to Dissipation, Life, Intelligence, Artificial Agency, and Civilizational CollapseClaim-Space Timestamp Edition — May 2026 Official website: distinctiontheory.orgPublic portal for the start guide, papers, claim status, failure registry, prior-art boundary, and citation resources. Canonical GitHub repository:https://github.com/yiningwu-research/Distinction-Theory Description: Distinction Theory (DT) is a timestamped, falsifiable, tiered research programme for studying what finite systems must pay in order to persist. It begins from a single primitive: distinction—the operation by which "this" is separated from "not-this." The…