Coherent Comparison as Information Cost: Axiomatic Foundations for Discrete Ledger Dynamics
Sebastián Pardo-Guerra, Anil Thapa, Megan Simons, Jonathan Washburn · Foundations · 2026
We develop an information-theoretic, cost-first framework for discrete dynamics in which the primitive operation is ratio-based comparison. Given two quantities compared via their ratio x=a/b, we assign a cost F(x) measuring deviation from equilibrium (x=1). Adopting a reciprocal d’Alembert composition law motivated by coherent chaining, together with quadratic calibration at unity, uniquely determines a reciprocal comparison cost J(x)=12x+x−1−1. Taking J as input, we model recognition events as deterministic updates on directed graphs recorded in a minimal ledger. Minimality (no intra-tick ordering metadata) together with non-commutativity of events implies atomic ticks: at most one event per tick. With conservation, pairwise locality, and quantization in δZ, each event is recorded as a balanced double-entry posting. For graphs with cycles, assuming time-aggregated cycle closure over a finite clearing horizon, we show that cleared cycle closure is equivalent to path-independence and that the cumulative flow admits a scalar potential on each connected component (unique up to additive constant) via a discrete Poincaré lemma. On hypercube graphs Qd, atomic single-edge updates impose a 2d-tick minimal period for timestamp-unique coverage, realized by cyclic Gray codes (explicitly for d=3). The framework links ratio-based cost functions, conservative graph flows, and discrete potential theory through explicitly stated axioms and structural assumptions.