How do humans detect explanatory significance?
Structure Recognition Theory (SRT) is a theoretical framework investigating the cognitive mechanisms by which humans discover structures, assign meaning to them, and generate research questions. The theory proposes that research does not begin from structure detection alone, but from detecting explanatory significance — a sense that a structure warrants investigation.
Built on three empirical case studies (Papers 1–3 on Karnaugh map patterns, symmetric Boolean functions, and variable rearrangement invariance), SRT currently comprises ten exploratory hypotheses (H1–H10), formal definitions of Structure, Attention, and Explanatory Significance, and a hierarchy of fifteen research questions (Q1–Q15 across eight levels).
All hypotheses are exploratory. None are established conclusions.
| # | Name | Core Claim |
|---|---|---|
| H1 | Structure Discoverer | Humans have comparative advantage in structure discovery over AI |
| H2 | Representation Transformation | Representation change enables structure discovery |
| H3 | Attention Filter | Not all patterns receive investigative attention |
| H4 | Significance Filter | Implicit filter: "is this worth investigating?" |
| H5 | Explanation Anticipation | Humans feel a pattern "should have an explanation" before finding it |
| H6 | Explanatory Significance | Research begins from detection of explanatory potential, not structure per se |
| H7 | Mature Structure Discoverer | Human core role = detecting explanation opportunity |
| H8 | Concept-as-Lens | Concepts function as observation lenses — changing what is visible |
| H9 | Concept Evolution | Research generates concepts; concepts generate further research |
| H10 | Generative Concept | Concepts differ in their generativity — some open more research than others |
Full theory text (definitions, H4 operationalization, empirical designs) is maintained as a compressed summary in the inha20 repository's theory/ folder.
| Document | Version | Contents | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| SRT_Summary.md | v0.3 (compressed) | Formal Definitions 3.1–3.3, H4 operationalization, Empirical Design §10 | inha20/theory/ |
| Hypotheses.md | H1–H10 | All hypotheses with formal definition cross-references | this repository |
| CoreQuestions.md | v2.0 | Q1–Q15 across Level 0–8 | this repository |
| OpenProblems.md | v1.1 | OP-01–OP-09 | this repository |