Metaformal Sciences

The academic discipline that studies the nature of form, structure, and pattern, but from such a high level of abstraction that it becomes impossible to determine what is actually being studied. It's the field that asks: what is the shape of a shape? What is the pattern of patterning? And if you write a grant proposal about it, does the proposal itself become a metaformal object? Metaformal sciences are popular among philosophers who have given up on content and now focus exclusively on the containers that hold it, leading to conferences where everyone argues about the shape of the argument rather than the argument itself.

Example: "His dissertation in metaformal sciences was titled 'A Structural Analysis of the Concept of Structure in Structurally-Oriented Analyses.' His advisor said it was the most perfectly formed piece of nonsense he'd ever read and gave him an A+ for consistency."

by Nammugal February 14, 2026

Metaformal Social Sciences

The study of how human societies create, adopt, and fight over forms, structures, and templates. It examines why bureaucratic forms are always designed by sadists, why certain architectural styles become associated with power (columns = democracy, brutalist concrete = authoritarianism), and why the shape of a table can determine the outcome of a negotiation (round = collaborative, rectangular = adversarial). Metaformal social sciences reveal that humans are not just content-driven creatures; we are deeply influenced by the invisible structures that shape our interactions, from the layout of a classroom to the design of a smartphone app.

Example: "A metaformal social sciences study compared cities with grid layouts to those with organic, winding streets. It found that grid-city residents were more likely to get lost but more confident about giving directions, while organic-city residents had given up on navigation entirely and just followed vibes. The form of the city had shaped the psyche of its inhabitants."

by Nammugal February 14, 2026