Admiration and Caution: Eddington’s Fundamental Theory and the Discipline for Not Falling into Numerology (Not Mistaking Derivation for Selection).
The corpus walks a program of reading fundamental constants and dimensions from geometry and counting (the 4π and dimension staircase, Papers 01/02/64/69). On this road one giant stands as BOTH ancestor and caution: Arthur Eddington. He confirmed general relativity at the 1919 eclipse and built stellar-structure theory, yet in his late Fundamental Theory he tried to derive the fine-structure constant and the number of protons in the universe from pure numbers and group theory, and SLID INTO NUMEROLOGY — the tale of “deriving” 1/alpha=136 and then, once measurement favoured 137, ADDING ONE (136->137) became a textbook case of how physics goes wrong (modern value ~137.036, not even an integer). This paper dissects the slide not to look down on him but as a MIRROR for the corpus not to repeat it. Four things broke: (1) post-hoc adjustment, (2) a fixed target (reasoning backward to a pre-decided value), (3) absence of an independent derivation (no support beyond the numerical coincidence), (4) absence of a falsifiable new prediction. Against these the corpus’s IMMUNITY is its own discipline: the three-layer label (speculation quarantined as Layer-3 non-science), the separation of DISTINCT ROOTS (58/86), “resonance is a signature, not a proof” (100), “compare as functions, not values” (58), and separating convention from fact (95). This is the DEFENSIVE synthesis, the counterpart to the offensive map (Paper 100). IMPORTANT (scope): a Layer-2 structural interpretation of the history and methodology of science; it does NOT look down on Eddington (admiration and caution coexist) and does NOT claim to derive constants; no new mathematics and no new prediction. The Universe OS is a Layer-3 non-science lens.
On the making of this work: The ideas and content of this work stem from the author’s own considerations. Assistance from an AI (a large language model) was used for structuring, English translation, and checking the algebra. Any remaining errors or misinterpretations are solely the author’s. Feedback and corrections are sincerely appreciated.
Reference
Yamagishi, Y. (2026). Admiration and Caution [Paper 101]. Zenodo.
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21836382
ORCID: 0009-0006-8587-3450