The Triadic Completion Principle: A Minimal Structural Condition for System Validity

Most systems of thought, scientific or philosophical, describe either what could exist, what is observed, or what has been constructed. However, they rarely formalise the minimal condition required for a system to be considered complete. This paper introduces the Triadic Completion Principle, which states that any valid system must simultaneously account for three irreducible components: potential (♾️), anchor (●), and structure (■). These components are not independent; they form a recursive chain in which each enables and constrains the others. The principle operates prior to modelling and provides a minimal completeness condition for admissible system existence.

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Publication Details

Journal
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Published
2026-03-20
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19123536
Primary Topic
Philosophy and History of Science
Type
article
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article

The Triadic Completion Principle: A Minimal Structural Condition for System Validity

Andrew John Paton
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Philosophy and History of Science
article

The Triadic Completion Principle: A Minimal Structural Condition for System Validity

Andrew John Paton
article en

Abstract

Most systems of thought, scientific or philosophical, describe either what could exist, what is observed, or what has been constructed. However, they rarely formalise the minimal condition required for a system to be considered complete. This paper introduces the Triadic Completion Principle, which states that any valid system must simultaneously account for three irreducible components: potential (♾️), anchor (●), and structure (■). These components are not independent; they form a recursive chain in which each enables and constrains the others. The principle operates prior to modelling and provides a minimal completeness condition for admissible system existence.

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Reduced inequalities
Openalex Percentile: Top 10%
Philosophy and History of Science
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