A rigorous physicalist framework requires an uncompromised ontological foundation that rejects both explanatory gaps and untestable descriptive layers. The physical universe does not operate as a fixed three-dimensional container with absolute backgrounds; instead, spatial and dimensional properties emerge dynamically from underlying Everettian structures.
Dimensional Fluidity and Probability-Density Phase Space
Physical reality is not fundamentally three-dimensional in a rigid, classical sense. The effective dimensionality of the universe is variable, dictated directly by the Everettian range of alternative particle interactions.
- Interaction Ranges and Dimensions: Spatial dimensions scale according to the complexity and reach of partial entanglement networks across possible interaction regions.
- Phase Space Yield: An expansive probability-density Everettian phase space generates an enormous multiplicity of interaction alternatives, defining the structural fabric of physical reality without requiring external geometrical templates.
Resolution of the Measurement Problem
The traditional measurement problem—the artificial division between microscopic unitary evolution and macroscopic classical outcomes—is resolved through this phase-space architecture.
- Partial Entanglement Networks: “Observation” is strictly a physical event of partial entanglement among particles, where sufficient interaction density locks an alternative into a wider reality, preventing it from dissolving back into the broader sea of alternatives.
- Everettian Primacy: Pure, uninterrupted unitary evolution functions as the ontological truth of the substrate, operating without collapse mechanisms or observer-dependent privileges. While Everettianism remains correct, ongoing theoretical work must determine whether subtle multiscale phenomena alter the exact distribution or density of alternative outcomes.
Absolute Rejection of Hidden Variables
Hidden-variable theories—such as pilot-wave or Bohmian mechanics—are rejected outright.
- Permanent Vagueness: Hidden-variable models introduce an untraceable, permanently undetectable layer (such as a preferred foliation or quantum ether) to preserve classical trajectories.
- Failure of Mechanism: Permanent descriptive vagueness fails to provide a physical explanation, turning into an impossible ontology that contradicts rigorous physicalism. Non-negotiable rejection of hidden variables is a requirement for any clean physical foundation.
Rigorous Critique and Open Frontiers
- Mathematical Formalization of Variable Dimensions: Translating variable dimensionality from a conceptual phase-space framework into precise, calculational physical models presents a monumental hurdle. Proving how effective spatial dimensions emerge from probability-density entanglement networks cannot be achieved through philosophical declaration alone; it demands decades of advanced theoretical and experimental work in quantum gravity and open-system thermodynamics.
- Empirical Verification of Phase-Space Density: While the Everettian interpretation avoids the fatal flaws of collapse and hidden-variable models, calculating the exact distribution metrics across the expansive probability-density phase space remains an open frontier. Bridging the gap between abstract unitary branching and observable macro-scale diversification requires long-term, rigorous scientific evolution.