Absolute physics

We present a two-view construction that separates evolution from appearance. In the evolution view, null carriers propagate at a fixed local speed on a Euclidean chart; matter is bound null circulation, and gravity is a scalar graded-index field. Embedded observers—built from the same carriers—obtain appearance-level readouts via a measurement map that mints rods and clocks from null circulation. A single travel-time functional governs both propagation and local rates and, when read through the measurement map, produces the optical-metric appearance associated with GR at 1PN for rays, clocks, and test-mass motion—and likewise keeps relativistic optics (aberration, Doppler/beaming, Terrell–Penrose) on the flat chart. In addition, the split clarifies causal order: order belongs to evolution, while simultaneity belongs to appearance. Because the measurement map is order-preserving (causal isotony), perspective cannot invert cause and effect; even hypothetical faster-than-light probes would at most reveal a preferred frame rather than generate retrocausal loops.

The result is a transparent, operational platform—flat evolution, curved appearance—that explains why GR looks the way it does, keeps SR kinematics and relativistic optics under one principle, and remains compatible with optics-style computation (eikonal/ray-tracing, delay surfaces), while offering a clean path to extensions beyond 1PN that preserve the separation of concerns. A proof-of-concept interactive simulator is provided, demonstrating SR kinematics.

Download paper: https://zenodo.org/records/17151372 

Download simulator: https://zenodo.org/records/17130417