The Floor
Every theory the sciences and mathematics actually run on, joined by what it
rests on , what limits it, and what shares its form . One body, so you can walk
from any theory to the ones holding it up. Drawn rather than listed, because a list cannot show
you what is missing — you would have to already know.
The same floor, read the other way, is
The Floor of Discovery — Scripture and the
created order as one design. That page is for seeing it; this one is for walking it.
Where the floor is missing
A lattice, because a lattice has
sites that can be empty . Eight dimensions down, the catalogue's sections across; each
site asks what a section contributes to a dimension, and a dashed
red cell is that question with nothing on the shelf to answer it. An empty site is a
question, not automatically a gap — some combinations need not exist — but a whole
row of them is a thin place worth walking to.
How well each theory is joined
The same 217, arranged by
how many relations each holds — most aligned at the centre, spiralling out at the golden
angle. Distance from the middle is how peripheral a theory is to the assembled floor.
Zoom in, turn it to another angle, and click any cell for its card.
Changing the angle changes the question the picture is answering: by depth the centre is
what we actually know most about, by calibration the sealable core separates from the
map-only rim.
most aligned
least aligned
Kolmogorov probability axioms
General relativity
Second law of thermodynamics (entropy)
Euclidean geometry & the parallel postulate
Quantum mechanics (Schrödinger equation)
Conservation of energy (1st law of thermodynamics)
Shannon information theory (entropy, channel capacity)
Acoustic wave theory (harmonics, Doppler)
Game theory (Nash equilibrium)
Hermeneutics (the theory of interpretation)
Maxwell's equations / classical electromagnetism
The electromagnetic spectrum & modulation (radio to gamma, one axis)
Celestial mechanics / ephemeris prediction
Chemical kinetics & equilibrium (Arrhenius, Le Chatelier)
Cryptographic security (hashing, checksums, PKI)
Fourier analysis & signal processing
Linear algebra (vector spaces, eigenvalues)
Newton's three laws of motion
Standard Model / quantum field theory
Wave optics (Huygens, Snell's law, diffraction)
Bayes' theorem
Bohr / quantum model of the atom
Cell theory
Central limit theorem
Chemical bonding (valence-bond / molecular-orbital)
Church–Turing thesis / computability
Differential equations (the language every physical law is written in)
Fundamental theorem of calculus
Homeostasis & physiological regulation
Linear programming & duality
Newton's law of universal gravitation
Spectroscopy (how we know what a distant thing is made of)
Aperiodic tiling (Penrose, and the 2023 monotile)
Control theory & cybernetics (feedback, stability)
Darwinian evolution by natural selection
Formal logic & epistemology (validity, inference)
Graph theory (Euler, connectivity)
Group theory & symmetry (the mathematics of what stays the same)
Kinetic theory of gases
Special relativity
Statistical mechanics (Boltzmann — why the second law is a counting argument)
Atmospheric thermodynamics (dew point, lapse rate)
Central dogma of molecular biology (DNA→RNA→protein)
Conservation of linear & angular momentum
Crop rotation & biological nitrogen fixation (the low-input path)
Fluid mechanics (Bernoulli, Reynolds, Navier–Stokes)
Germ theory of disease
Gödel's incompleteness theorems
Haber–Bosch nitrogen fixation (bread from air)
Mendelian inheritance
Noether's theorem (symmetry and conservation)
Nuclear decay & binding energy
Nutrient cycling & agronomy (NPK, evapotranspiration)
Pauli exclusion principle
Phase theory (phase diagrams, Clausius–Clapeyron)
Physical oceanography (hydrostatics, tides)
Population ecology (Lotka–Volterra, carrying capacity)
Structural & generative linguistics (Saussure, Chomsky)
Structural statics (load, moment, floor-area ratio)
Supply & demand / market equilibrium
Time value of money & discounting
Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory (ZFC)
Aristotelian rhetoric & fallacy taxonomy
Biochemistry & enzymes (catalysis at body temperature)
Bioenergetics / energy balance (calorimetry, 4-9-4)
Biomechanics of human movement (levers, torque, ground reaction)
Calendar theory (Gregorian reform, leap rules)
Chemical engineering (unit operations, balances, and scale-up)
Compartmental epidemiology (SIR models and R₀)
Condensed matter & semiconductors (band theory and the transistor)
Contract theory & rule of law
Dalton's atomic theory
Differential geometry (curvature measured from inside)
Digital versus analog (why discreteness survives copying)
Discrete units in living things (codon, gene, species, phoneme)
Discrete versus continuous (the oldest dividing line)
Dynamical systems & deterministic chaos
Elasticity (Hooke's law, stress–strain)
Electrochemistry & the battery (Volta, Faraday, and stored charge)
Error-correcting codes (Hamming, Reed–Solomon)
Evolutionary game theory (evolutionarily stable strategies)
Exercise physiology (VO₂max, HR zones)
Fundamental theorem of arithmetic (unique factorization)
Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium
Heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation)
Heisenberg uncertainty principle
Heliocentrism & Kepler's laws
Law of conservation of mass (Lavoisier)
Measure theory (Lebesgue integration)
Music theory (harmonic series, equal temperament)
Neuromuscular recruitment & the size principle (Henneman)
Non-Euclidean (hyperbolic / elliptic) geometry
Noncommutative geometry & the spectral triple (Connes)
Null-hypothesis significance testing (Fisher / Neyman–Pearson)
Optimization & gradient descent (following the slope)
Peano arithmetic axioms
Periodic law (Mendeleev)
Plasma physics (the fourth state, and most of the universe)
Projective geometry (perspective & the cross-ratio)
Public choice / decision theory
Quantum information & entanglement (von Neumann entropy)
Quasicrystals (forbidden symmetry in real matter)
Reliability & tolerance stack-up (RSS)
Semiotics (sign, signified, interpretant)
Simple machines & buoyancy (Archimedes)
Spacetime & the quantum-gravity problem (where physics ends)
Statistical learning theory (bias-variance, generalization)
Stellar nucleosynthesis & the HR diagram
Stochastic processes & Ito calculus
Stoichiometry & the mole concept
Topology (what survives stretching)
Vaccination & immune memory (Jenner to eradication)
AC & the polyphase system (Tesla, and why the grid is alternating)
Agricultural science (yield, soil-pH suitability)
Algebraic geometry (solution sets as shapes)
Algorithmic information (Kolmogorov complexity)
Antibiotics & antimicrobial resistance (Fleming's own warning)
Antisepsis & handwashing (Semmelweis, Lister)
Ashby's law of requisite variety (the humility theorem)
Astronomical dating (anchoring history to the sky)
Atomism (the idea that matter is not infinitely divisible)
Aufbau principle & electron configuration
Big Bang cosmology & expansion (Hubble's law)
Boolean algebra / propositional logic
Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory & pH
Category theory (the mathematics of structure-preserving maps)
Circulation of the blood (Harvey's quantitative argument)
Combinatorial enumeration (permutations, combinations, binomial)
Comparative advantage
Computational complexity (P, NP, reductions)
Counting & the integers (the first abstraction)
Depth of field & hyperfocal distance
Double-entry accounting identity (A = L + E)
Electromagnetic induction (Faraday's law — how all electricity is made)
Emergence & self-organization (more is different)
Fixed-point theorems (Brouwer, Kakutani)
Fracture mechanics (Griffith, and why things really break)
Fundamental theorem of algebra
Geostrophic balance & Coriolis dynamics
Girih tiles — quasi-periodic design in medieval Islamic architecture
Historical chronology (era reckoning, elapsed years)
Human capital theory (Becker, Mincer)
Hydrologic cycle & open-channel flow (Manning, Darcy)
Ideal gas law (PV = nRT)
Income capitalization (V = NOI / cap rate)
Information geometry (statistics as curved space)
Julian Day Number (continuous astronomical time)
Labor economics (minimum wage, overtime law)
Landauer's principle (erasing information costs heat)
Law of large numbers
Liebig's law of the minimum (what actually limits growth)
Macronutrient metabolism & glycemic response
Map projections (why no flat map is honest)
Mechanism design & auction theory
Modern portfolio theory (Markowitz)
Network science (small-world, scale-free, robustness)
Network theory (routing, addressing / CIDR)
Neurons & the action potential (how a nerve carries a signal)
Numerical analysis (why the computer's answer is not the answer)
Ohm's law & circuit theory (Kirchhoff)
Optimal packing & the honeycomb conjecture (Hales)
Organic chemistry & functional groups (why life is built on carbon)
Percolation & critical thresholds
Pharmacokinetics (dosing, clearance, half-life)
Photographic exposure theory (exposure value, reciprocity)
Plate tectonics
Power laws & heavy tails (Zipf, Pareto)
Quantization (why nature comes in whole units)
Quantum error correction & the threshold theorem
Real-estate valuation (cap rate, DCF)
Sabermetrics / sports analytics (Pythagorean expectation, Elo)
Sanitation, clean water & oral rehydration (Snow's pump handle)
Scaling laws & allometry (Kleiber's law, the square-cube)
Signal detection theory (sensitivity, criterion, ROC)
Spectral geometry (can one hear the shape of a drum?)
Superfluid vacuum theory (the vacuum as a quantum liquid)
Symbiosis & endosymbiosis (cooperation as a major transition)
Systems engineering (requirements, interfaces, and emergent failure)
Textual criticism (establishing what the text says)
The Coase theorem (law & economics)
The Green Revolution (Borlaug, semi-dwarf breeding)
The Toulmin model of argumentation
The double helix (structure that explains its own copying)
The five Platonic solids
The free-energy principle (Friston)
The holographic principle & black-hole entropy
The immune system (innate and adaptive, and self versus not-self)
The renormalization group (physics across scales)
Thermohaline circulation (the ocean conveyor)
Topological quantum computation (non-Abelian / Fibonacci anyons)
Translation theory (formal vs dynamic equivalence)
Trophic dynamics & ecological efficiency (Lindeman)
Tuning systems & the Pythagorean comma
VSEPR theory (molecular geometry)
Win-probability & expected-value models
Arrow's impossibility theorem
Central place theory (Christaller)
Diffie-Hellman key exchange
Dimensional analysis & similarity (Buckingham Π)
Explore versus exploit (the multi-armed bandit)
Fractals & self-similarity (Mandelbrot)
Hess's law / thermochemistry
Molecular symmetry & point groups
Motor learning & the stages of skill acquisition (Fitts & Posner)
Normative ethics (consequentialism / deontology / virtue)
Prospect theory & bounded rationality (Kahneman, Simon)
Pythagorean theorem
Queueing theory (Little's law)
Radiometric dating & uniformitarianism
Room acoustics & reverberation (Sabine)
Seismology & earthquake magnitude (Richter / moment)
Singular value decomposition (SVD)
The Carnot limit (the ceiling on every engine ever built)
The Casimir effect (structured energy of the quantum vacuum)
The Saros cycle (eclipse prediction)
The golden ratio & phyllotaxis
Third law of thermodynamics
Kolmogorov probability axioms
General relativity
Second law of thermodynamics
Euclidean geometry & the paral
Quantum mechanics
Conservation of energy
Shannon information theory
Acoustic wave theory
Game theory
Hermeneutics
Maxwell's equations / classica
The electromagnetic spectrum &
Celestial mechanics / ephemeri
Chemical kinetics & equilibriu
Cryptographic security
Fourier analysis & signal proc
Linear algebra
Newton's three laws of motion
Standard Model / quantum field
Wave optics
Bayes' theorem
Bohr / quantum model of the at
Mathematics (56)
Physics (35)
Chemistry (15)
Life sciences (33)
Earth (14)
Applied (38)
Humanities (15)
Applied and social sciences (3)
Physical sciences (8)
THE FLOOR
217 theories · 354 relations · one body · most aligned at the centre
angle
alignment
depth
section
calibration
+
−
reset
drag to pan · scroll to zoom · click a cell for its card
rests on
limits
shares a form
node size = relations held · brightness = depth of the card ·
red ring = resting on almost nothing
What the drawing is telling you
theories 217
relations 354 · every one carrying its evidence
cross-domain pairs 169
median relations per theory 3
cards with real depth 217 of 217
— the rest carry only the assay template, which is why the map is dim
Thin — a beam resting on almost nothing
These hold one relation or none. Not wrong; underbuilt.
Each is a place to look for what it actually stands on.
Arrow's impossibility theorem · governance Central place theory (Christaller) · geography Diffie-Hellman key exchange · cybersecurity Dimensional analysis & similarity (Buckingham Π) · physics Explore versus exploit (the multi-armed bandit) · operations_research Fractals & self-similarity (Mandelbrot) · mathematics Hess's law / thermochemistry · chemistry Molecular symmetry & point groups · molecular_geometry Motor learning & the stages of skill acquisition (Fitts & Posner) · exercise_science Normative ethics (consequentialism / deontology / virtue) · philosophy Prospect theory & bounded rationality (Kahneman, Simon) · economics Pythagorean theorem · geometry Queueing theory (Little's law) · operations_research Radiometric dating & uniformitarianism · geology Room acoustics & reverberation (Sabine) · acoustics Seismology & earthquake magnitude (Richter / moment) · geology Singular value decomposition (SVD) · linear_algebra The Carnot limit (the ceiling on every engine ever built) · thermodynamics The Casimir effect (structured energy of the quantum vacuum) · physics The Saros cycle (eclipse prediction) · ephemeris
Lone in its domain
One theory covering a whole field is a field we have
barely entered.
Found and checked, never generated. Every relation carries the
reason it exists; a relation without one is not written.