Ontological Misinterpretations of Wave Propagation: Nature Is Bilateral, Not Radial

This paper examines two foundational interpretive limitations in the standard account of electromagnetic wave propagation. The first concerns the 90-degree geometric relationship between the electric field vector E and the magnetic field vector B, proposing that these represent two sequential conditions of a single bilateral cycle rather than two independent forces. The second concerns the interpretation of Hertz's 1888 antenna polarisation experiment, demonstrating that the zero-coupling result at 90-degree receiver rotation is equally explained by the geometry of Earth's pre-existing bilateral field system — a variable never formally isolated in the original experiment. Convergent evidence from seven independent domains is presented: acoustic wave dynamics, alternating current magnetic field behaviour, fluid dynamics of vortex ring wall impact, atmospheric science of the two-celled tornado, crystallographic twinning, pool vortex ring dynamics, and high-speed Schlieren photography. In no domain other than electromagnetism has the 90-degree relationship between axial and equatorial components been interpreted as two separate forces. Maxwell's equations are not disputed. What is examined is whether the causal interpretation underlying those equations corresponds to the physical geometry they describe. A falsifiable experimental test is proposed: systematic rotation of the entire Hertz apparatus relative to Earth's geographic axes, with bilateral field geometry as the stated hypothesis.