The Scalar Model

Modern conversation often treats truth as a binary choice. A claim is either strictly true or entirely false. This rigid way of thinking creates a structural failure when we attempt to analyze complex systems or deep questions about life. When truth is restricted to an absolute yes-or-no switch, any missing data makes the entire model appear worthless. We propose instead a framework based on Provisional Truth. Under this model, truth is seen as the Degree of Fit between a claim and the observable world (Korzybski, 1933). This shift from absolute certainty to a measured fit allows us to navigate subjects that binary logic fails to resolve.

We must admit that human knowledge is never complete. A model can be functionally useful without being perfect. This approach follows the scientific method, where ideas are retained only as long as they explain the evidence better than the competing choices. Recognizing the limits of our knowledge is an engineering requirement for the sovereign individual. It acknowledges our inherent fallibility while still allowing for steady progress. When we accept that ideas can be mostly true, the focus moves from winning an argument to refining the model.

The Utility of Fit

The implementation of faith provides a clear example for this scalar model. Traditionally, belief in a personal God is debated as a binary variable. Using the Provisional Truth framework, we move the search toward verifiable results. Demanding absolute proof of something beyond the material world is less productive than observing how a worldview fits with systemic reality. We see that clear data exists regarding how this belief affects individual stability. Studies consistently show that a steady faith often correlates with increased hope and a higher capacity for stress management (James, 1902).

Testing high-variety ideas requires us to examine their constituent parts. An engineer’s stance requires an analysis of claims one by one. We look for the "cash value" of a belief system by observing its practical consequences in full experience. This includes observing the patterns of narratives told across cultures or the social cohesion generated by shared ritual. These patterns serve as high-integrity telemetry. They are repeated observations that provide structural weight to an idea even when direct, binary proof is unavailable. Gathering this evidence increases our confidence without the need for absolute certainty.

The Degree of Benefit

A clear distinction exists between what is "proven" and what "works." We recognize that a belief system can sustain a community without satisfying the requirement for absolute material proof. High-integrity social groups often use shared frameworks to encourage coordination and trust. These social results provide us with real data. If a community following a specific model achieves higher stability than one that does not, that model has demonstrated a high Degree of Fit with social reality. This does not prove a deity exists, but it confirms the model helps the system achieve homeostasis.

The standard binary model forces us to choose between total certainty and total rejection. This often leads to a state of paralysis, where truth is only expected after the system has already reached its end state. Measured models free the investigator from this trap. Faith and rejection become competing hypotheses to be tested using new data. We can test an idea by observing how it shapes our daily choices and emotional stability. This allows for a living investigation where beliefs are updated based on resonance rather than defended like a static fortress.

The Living Search

Admitting the limits of our knowledge does not prevent us from finding meaning. We regularly navigate using maps that are not perfect. As Alfred Korzybski famously stated, "the map is not the territory." A map of a city is not the city itself, but its value is found in how accurately it guides the traveler to their destination. If the map guides us to the goal, it is true enough for the journey. Similarly, if a set of beliefs helps an individual handle the friction of life, it has demonstrated a functional reality. The scalar model of truth puts this fit first.

This shift also changes how we handle disagreement. When truth is a scale, different ideas may capture different frequencies of the same reality. One perspective might address emotional requirements while another fits physical facts. Our goal is to find the model that provides the highest requisite variety for the current environment. This requires constant testing and a willingness to discard the parts that do not result in a cleaner signal. It turns faith from a fixed, defensive state into a living search for the structural integrity of the world.

Glossary

• Provisional Truth: A tentative model of reality that is accepted based on current evidence but remains open to revision.
• Degree of Fit: The measure of how accurately an internal model or belief corresponds to the results of external experience.
• Binary Logic: The low-resolution classification of information into rigid, mutually exclusive categories of "true" and "false."
• Scalar Model: A framework that evaluates truth on a continuous spectrum of utility and correspondence rather than a binary switch.

Assumptions and Assertions

• [Assumption] Human models of reality are abstractions and not identical to the reality they represent (Korzybski, 1933).
• [Assertion] The validity of a belief is determined by its practical "cash value" and experimental consequences (James, 1902).
• [Assertion] Functional utility in a social system is a high-fidelity indicator of a model's Degree of Fit (DiBella, 2026).
• [Assertion] Systematic uncertainty is a more resilient state than false binary certainty.

Reference Citations

• DiBella, Charles. Moral Physics Project. Part 05: Scalar Truth (2026).
• James, W. The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature (1902).
• Korzybski, A. Science and Sanity: An Introduction to Non-Aristotelian Systems and General Semantics (1933).

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