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The Quantumograph: A Discrete Ontology of Spacetime and the Empirical Accessibility of Quantum Gravity

Sergej Materov

Published Apr 29, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Quantum gravity is traditionally regarded as a domain of mathematical physics devoid of direct empirical access. This paper proposes an alternative research program-the Quantumograph (TQGT) (Materov 2026) - in which spacetime is ontologically identical to a finite quantum graph, while continuum notions (metric, fields, time) are strictly emergent. I argue that this program possesses excess empirical content: its central predictions are testable on existing cryogenic quantum processors, thereby relocating quantum gravity from speculation to experimental science. Philosophical analysis reveals ontological consequences: support for ontic structural realism, the constitutional finitude of the Universe, the dynamic nature of time, and two fundamental theorems on the absence of asymptotic chaos and computational reducibility. A comparison with string theory, loop quantum gravity, and the Fredkin–Wolfram–Lloyd digital-physics tradition locates the program's unique status as a falsifiable digital structuralism.

DOI
10.5281/zenodo.19870702

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Quantum gravity is traditionally regarded as a domain of mathematical physics devoid of direct empirical access. This paper proposes an alternative research program-the Quantumograph (TQGT) (Materov 2026) - in which spacetime is ontologically identical to a finite quantum graph, while continuum notions (metric, fields, time) are strictly emergent. I argue that this program possesses excess empirical content: its central predictions are testable on existing cryogenic quantum processors, thereby relocating quantum gravity from speculation to experimental science. Philosophical analysis reveals ontological consequences: support for ontic structural realism, the constitutional finitude of the Universe, the dynamic nature of time, and two fundamental theorems on the absence of asymptotic chaos and computational reducibility. A comparison with string theory, loop quantum gravity, and the Fredkin–Wolfram–Lloyd digital-physics tradition locates the program's unique status as a falsifiable digital structuralism.
We’re pleased to share the revised preprint of our work on a discrete quantum-graph theory of spacetime (the Quantumograph). The Quantumograph is a discrete quantum graph model in which continuum field theories — including general relativity and gauge theories — emerge as effective descriptions at long wavelengths. Importantly, the discrete graph model is presented as the fundamental ontology; continuum theories arise only as approximations in a controlled scaling regime. Initial emulations and numerical checks (see our GitHub repository) qualitatively support the construction; true empirical confirmation will require implementation of the measurement protocol described in the paper, which is feasible on current QPU platforms under the conditions we specify. Key testable elements include predictions for qubit platforms (QPU and annealers), microwave/dielectric signatures, two-boundary (retrocausal) tests of causality, CHSH/Bell observables, and relations tying emergent constants to cosmological scales. Feedback and collaboration welcome.
We’re pleased to share the revised preprint of our work on a discrete quantum-graph theory of spacetime (the Quantumograph). The Quantumograph is a discrete quantum graph model in which continuum field theories — including general relativity and gauge theories — emerge as effective descriptions at long scale. Importantly, the discrete graph model is presented as the fundamental ontology; continuum theories arise only as approximations in a controlled scaling regime. Initial emulations and numerical checks (see our GitHub repository) qualitatively support the construction; true empirical confirmation will require implementation of the measurement protocol described in the paper, which is feasible on current QPU platforms under the conditions we specify. Key testable elements include predictions for qubit platforms (QPU and annealers), microwave/dielectric signatures, two-boundary (retrocausal) tests of causality, CHSH/Bell observables, and relations tying emergent constants to cosmological scales. Feedback and collaboration welcome.
Abstract This paper proposes that time is not a fundamental dimension of reality but an emergent property generated through a specific causal chain originating in a quantum gravitational mechanism not yet fully characterized by existing physics. There is no universal t = 0 in an absolute sense. There is only a threshold at which the quantum gravitational mechanism begins to generate motion, and time becomes applicable within a localized system only after that threshold is crossed. The central chain of inference is as follows: the quantum gravitational mechanism generates motion; motion generates new distinguishable information states; time is the ordered accumulation of those information states; and because information cannot be destroyed in the ontological sense proposed by this framework, the temporal sequence is irreversible by structural necessity rather than by thermodynamic probability. This four-step chain is not merely a restatement of existing physics in new language. It provides a mechanistic basis for the arrow of time, a physical account of wave function collapse, a structural explanation for the ontological threshold at quantum measurement, a reframing of the QM/GR incompatibility, a structural consequence for time travel impossibility within the framework’s own ontology, a predicted structural basis for the Hubble tension, an ontological resolution of quantum information scrambling — identifying apparent scrambling not as a property of the information itself but as an artifact of the outside-in observational position encountering the statistical surface of an internally ordered generative record that remains perfectly traceable from the inside-out perspective — and a precise reframing of the photon proper time paradox, identifying the τ = 0 result not as experiential simultaneity but as the expected mathematical signature of a massless particle operating at the c boundary condition of the emergent temporal domain where derived temporal measures are structurally inapplicable — each as a consequence of the same single ontological principle rather than as separately introduced claims. The fact that a single ontological principle generates resolutions to problems that physics has treated as unrelated for decades is not coincidental. It is the kind of convergent explanatory structure that has historically accompanied correct foundational claims — and the experimental program described here is designed to determine whether this framework earns that status. The ontology advanced here is referred to as Generative Inscription: the view that ordered time is the downstream accumulation of irreversibly inscribed state distinctions generated by motion from an upstream quantum-gravitational source. This framework advances toward operational unity by introducing a time-generation scalar field χ encoding the local density of irreversible information state generation per unit of action, a coupling constant κmotion defining the relationship between kinetic energy flux and information state generation rate, a phase transition model for the ontological threshold, a formal discriminator (ℛtot) bounding apparent thermodynamic time reversal against an absolute ontological record burden, candidate scaling laws for experimental signatures in fusion plasma diagnostics, a modified Friedmann equation incorporating geometric temporal asymmetry, and a defined set of minimal admissibility conditions formalizing the quantum gravitational mechanism as a constrained generator class rather than an unspecified placeholder. The primary coordinate is shifted from standard time t to Action S, with t emerging as a derived parameter, so that the mathematical structure reflects the ontological hierarchy this proposed framework claims. The framework employs an action-parameterized tangent vector rather than the standard four-velocity, separates coupling constants by operational scale, and adopts the Maupertuis formulation of action as the primary coordinate from which time derives. The framework is explicitly differentiated from related prior work by Wiltshire, Barbour, Vaccaro, and Brukner. Two cosmological predictions follow structurally from the core ontology: χ field convergence nodes at cosmic web filament intersections produce qualitatively distinct temporal environments, and gravitational wave events constitute propagating χ field disturbances with testable quantum measurement correlatives. Recent experimental observation of superluminal optical vortex motion provides an empirical glimpse of the distinction this framework draws between the generating mechanism’s operational level and the emergent temporal domain c governs. The experimental program described in Section 6 is not separate from the theory. It is the proposed inside-out crucible by which the framework would be falsified or strengthened through sustained nuclear fusion plasma diagnostics operating at stellar-interior conditions as should become available as fusion reactor technologies reach operational status within the next 10 to 20 years. Correspondence: seedire@gmail.com
Abstract This article does not claim to present a successful theory of quantum gravity. Instead, it undertakes a systematic and self-aware survey of the research program aiming to derive both quantum mechanics and general relativity from a purely relational network, based on a set of minimal ontological postulates. The framework rests on three axioms: (1) physical reality consists of nodes without intrinsic properties and their symmetric relations; (2) the relation strengths are non-negative and symmetric, with the total information capacity conserved as an ensemble expectation; (3) local evolution is restricted to redistribution of relations within triads. We honestly display and rigorously distinguish the conceptual achievements from the essential obstacles of this framework. On the quantum side, we obtain solid conceptual progress: the Born rule, unitary evolution, and topological nonlocality of entanglement all emerge naturally as representation-theoretic consequences of the statistical description of a finite information capacity network. This strongly suggests that the mathematical structure of quantum mechanics may be a generic feature of the statistical representation of any complex informational system satisfying “finite information + local relational evolution.” On the gravitational side, however, we encounter chasms that current mathematical and conceptual tools cannot bridge. A central contribution of this article is to clearly label these obstacles as fundamental open scientific problems: the conflict between a positive-definite relational ontology and the target of pseudo-Riemannian signature (signature problem); the missing coarse-graining procedure from a discrete network to a smooth manifold (coarse-graining problem); and the disharmony between external algorithmic time and emergent physical time (time problem). We argue that these are not technical details unique to this framework, but core challenges that any “spacetime from relations” program must confront. The article positions itself as a “conceptual cartography”—it precisely delineates the known boundaries of this research program, exposes the fatal rift often bypassed in mainstream discourse, and transforms all unresolved issues into a formal invitation for future investigation.
The dissertation investigates some relevant metaphysical issues arising in the context of spacetime theories. In particular, the inquiry focuses on general relativity and canonical quantum gravity. A formal definition of spacetime theory is proposed and, against this framework, an analysis of the notions of general covariance, symmetry and background independence is performed. It is argued that many conceptual issues in general relativity and canonical quantum gravity derive from putting excessive emphasis on general covariance as an ontological prin-ciple. An original metaphysical position grounded in scientific essential- ism and causal realism (weak essentialism) is developed and defended. It is argued that, in the context of general relativity, weak essentialism supports spacetime substantivalism. It is also shown that weak essentialism escapes arguments from metaphysical underdetermination by positing a particular kind of causation, dubbed geometric. The proposed interpretive framework is then applied to Bohmian mechanics, pointing out that weak essentialism nicely fits into this theory. In the end, a possible Bohmian implementation of loop quantum gravity is considered, and such a Bohmian approach is interpreted in a geometric causal fashion. Under this interpretation, Bohmian loop quantum gravity straightforwardly commits us to an ontology of elementary extensions of space whose evolution is described by a non-local law. The causal mechanism underlying this evolution clarifies many conceptual issues related to the emergence of classical spacetime from the quantum regime. Although there is as yet no fully worked out physical theory of quantum gravity, it is argued that the proposed approach sets up a standard that proposals for a serious ontology in this field should meet.