Temporal Entropic Cost - A Universal Metric for Coherence Loss and Systemic Risk

In the 21st century, time ceases to be merely context and becomes a measurable, governable, and costly asset.This work introduces Temporal Entropic Cost (CET) as a universal systemic metric designed to quantify the irreversible loss of internal coherence in complex systems over time. Unlike traditional metrics focused on instantaneous states, performance, or local efficiency, CET measures the continuous microscopic degradation that accumulates even while a system appears to operate normally. This degradation is converted into explicit temporal cost, enabling the identification of structural risk before functional failure emerges. CET operates on the VCore — Fundamental Temporal Layer, a conceptual and operational layer that treats time as an active variable of governance. Within this framework, systemic risk is determined not solely by absolute values, but primarily by the growth rate of temporal entropic cost over time. By construction, Temporal Entropic Cost is domain-independent and applicable to technological, organizational, financial, industrial, and natural systems. The metric provides a common language for analysis, comparison, and decision-making across heterogeneous and complex environments. This document establishes the formal definition, fundamental properties, and practical implications of CET, serving as a canonical reference for future research, implementations, and applications of temporal governance in complex systems.