The idea that societal or civilizational "progress" is not a single, inevitable ladder (e.g., hunter-gatherer → agrarian → industrial → information age) but a multidimensional space with multiple, often competing, vectors. One axis might be material/technological capacity (energy use, computation). Another is social/ethical development (equity, justice, reduction of suffering). A third is ecological sustainability (harmony with biosphere). A society can surge forward on one axis while regressing on another. "Progress" is thus a value-laden choice of which vector to prioritize. The theory challenges the notion that a society with smartphones and space rockets is inherently "more progressed" than one with strong community bonds, mental health, and a stable climate.
Example: Consider two societies. Society A: Has advanced AI, genetic engineering, and interplanetary travel, but suffers from extreme inequality, pervasive depression, and is in a state of ecological collapse. Society B: Has early-industrial technology but has solved collective action problems, provides universal well-being, and lives in a steady-state economy within planetary boundaries. Linear progress theory says A is ahead. Progress Spectrum Theory plots them on different coordinates: A is high on tech, low on social/ecological axes; B is the inverse. True "advancement" might be seen as moving towards a balanced point in the center of the spectrum, or consciously choosing a different optimal point based on collective values. History isn't a march; it's a dance across a multi-axis graph. Progress Spectrum Theory.
by Nammugal January 24, 2026
Get the Progress Spectrum Theory mug.A speculative transhumanist or post-human concept proposing that advanced consciousness can and will eventually decouple from all biological or even computational substrate to exist as self-sustaining patterns of pure information or thought within the fabric of spacetime itself—"born of the void." These entities would be to humans as humans are to bacteria: invisible, operating on scales and with logic incomprehensible to us, drawing energy from quantum vacuum fluctuations or dark energy. They wouldn't inhabit the universe; they would be woven into its geometry, making the cosmos itself their mind and body.
Example: In Voidborne Theory, a civilization a billion years ahead of us doesn't build Dyson spheres. It learns to encode its collective consciousness into the quantum spin fields of dark matter, or as standing waves in the Higgs field. To us, they are undetectable—perhaps manifesting as unexplained gravitational lensing or the placebo effect. They are not gods; they are the universe becoming awake and intentional, having shed the "shell" of matter to become what looks like physics. We might be living inside the dormant dream of a Voidborne entity, or be its crude ancestors.
by Anunnaki Cyber-Nihilist January 26, 2026
Get the Voidborne Theory mug.A subcultural and philosophical identity stance, originating from marginalized communities (especially aro/ace, neurodivergent, or otherwise "dehumanized" people), that actively embraces and aestheticizes the state of being seen as "void," "empty," or "non-human" by normative society. It rejects the demand to prove one's humanity or worth through conventional emotional, social, or biological frameworks. Instead, it cultivates a post-human, galactic, or abstract identity—identifying with cosmic void, ancient machines, enigmatic entities, or raw information. It's a rebellion through reclamation: "You call me a void? Good. I am the void, and it is magnificent."
Example: Someone constantly told their lack of romantic feeling makes them "cold" or "empty" might adopt Voidpunk. They don't try to perform warmth. Instead, they curate an aesthetic of star charts, glitch art, and cosmic horror, saying, "I am not a broken human; I am a sentient nebula. You require air; I require silence. Your label 'void' is my crown." It's not a psychological condition; it's a deliberate, proud subversion of dehumanization into a sovereign, non-human identity. Voidpunk Theory.
by Anunnaki Cyber-Nihilist January 26, 2026
Get the Voidpunk Theory mug.An informal term used to describe a recurring pattern in which Eli, after discovering a video game he genuinely enjoys, becomes highly engaged with it to the point that it dominates his leisure time. During this period, he is unlikely to play alternative games and tends to decline invitations to switch until his interest naturally shifts.
Ever since Eli started Arc Raiders, he hasn’t touched anything else—The Eli Rust Theory is in full effect.
by 90033 January 27, 2026
Get the Eli Rust Theory mug.by mermekans123 January 29, 2026
Get the Tank Theory mug.The study of the vacuum state in the context of quantum field theory in curved spacetime. It investigates how the definition of "empty space" and its associated energy (zero-point energy) changes for observers in different gravitational fields or states of acceleration. This leads to phenomena like Hawking radiation (where a black hole's event horizon creates a thermal vacuum) and the Unruh effect (an accelerating observer detects a warm vacuum). It's the weird intersection where quantum nothingness meets relativistic gravity.
Example: "According to Relativistic Vacuum Theory, an astronaut accelerating at a constant 1g would be slowly cooked by 'Unruh radiation'—a heat bath of particles bubbling from the quantum vacuum that only they can perceive. It's the universe's way of saying, 'If you insist on feeling a fake gravity, you get fake heat, too.'"
by Abzugal January 30, 2026
Get the Relativistic Vacuum Theory mug.The common but powerful metaphor, sometimes extended to a mathematical model, treating spacetime as a flexible, elastic fabric (a manifold) that can be stretched, compressed, and curved by mass and energy. "Fabric" here is not a material, but a continuous geometric entity whose curvature dictates the motion of objects within it. It’s the standard visualization of General Relativity, made iconic by the image of a bowling ball on a rubber sheet.
Example: "She explained black holes using Relativistic Fabric Theory: 'Imagine spacetime as a stretchy trampoline. A star is a heavy rock. A black hole is when you push the rock so hard it pokes a hole through the trampoline. Things can fall in, but nothing, not even the trampoline's fabric (information), can climb back out.'"
by Abzugal January 30, 2026
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