You read from here
Follow the arrow from left to right: the known is not the end point, and the unknown is not a blank.
Future Philosophy未来哲学中文App preview 03 / OPEN FRONTIERS
Explore frontiers
See clearly where the known ends,
and you will know where to go next.
All eight frontiers are laid out at once; each question follows the same cross-section, separating the known basis, evidence coverage, why it stops, what is truly unknown, criteria for progress and review gaps.
01 · How far the known goesBasis and evidence coverageFirst confirm what can currently be supported
02 · Why it stopsConstraints and unknown gapsSeparate limitations from missing answers
03 · How to advanceCriteria and review trackMake clear what would actually move the frontier
KNOWLEDGE BOUNDARY CROSS-SECTION · VISUAL 5.1
Start from the known and see why the evidence stops here
The catalog above shows all eight frontiers at once. Select one to unpack it layer by layer: known basis, evidence coverage, why the evidence stops, the unknown gap, criteria for progress and review status. Further reading: frontier research on 40 questions, with item-by-item evidence →
01 / 08 · Matter & CosmosWhat exactly is dark matter?
Editorial draft0 dedicated sources0 independent reviewsThe graphic below shows editorial structure; it does not mean scientific validation has been completed.
Observation
Clues from phenomena are accumulating, but different observations have not yet converged on a single explanation; the current material can only support that the question exists, not settle the answer.Limited by current instruments, samples or reachable scalesBOUNDARY PASSPORT · Frontier passport
Observational frontierWhat exactly is dark matter?
DomainMatter & Cosmos
Linked knowledge areasMatter & Energy · Astronomy & Worlds
Evidence statusEditorial label: Evidence developing
Catalog context claims2 editorial drafts
Frontier-specific sources0 · not yet linked
Independent review0 · awaiting domain review
Catalog versioncognition-map-0.3.0
Time horizon10–30 years
Traceability warning: this frontier is a structured editorial draft. Its evidence status comes from editorial labeling and is not equivalent to completed source verification, peer review or formal catalog release.
- 01Editorial structureCurrent
- 02Source verificationNot started
- 03Counterexample checkNot started
- 04Domain review0 reviews
- 05Catalog releaseNot released
Paths you can explore
1Deep-sky surveys2Underground detection3Competing theories
A next contribution should state which claim it tests, what data or argument it uses, what result would support or refute the claim, and where its scope stops.
Current frontier: What exactly is dark matter?; Observational frontier; editorial label: Evidence developing; 0 dedicated sources, 0 independent reviews.
FULL DIRECTORYOpen the full frontier directoryFilter, search and compare 8 editorial prototypes
Showing 8 knowledge frontiers.
Matter & Cosmos
What exactly is dark matter?
Several kinds of gravitational observations point to an extra mass component, but its constituent particles, interactions, and formation history have not been directly identified.
Known anchors
Galaxy rotation, gravitational lensing, galaxy-cluster dynamics, and cosmological models form an interlinked chain of gravitational evidence.
Truly unknown
Whether these effects come from one or more new particles, and how they take part in the formation of cosmic structure.
Criteria for progress
Different detection approaches obtain reproducible signals with consistent parameters that can rule out known backgrounds.
Editorial label: Strong evidence for the effects · underlying entity still open10–30 years
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Earth & Ecology
Where are the Earth system's tipping points?
Long-term observations are still too sparse to show how local changes couple across scales and trigger hard-to-reverse shifts.
Known anchors
Nonlinear changes and feedback mechanisms have already been observed in the cryosphere, ecosystems, and ocean circulation.
Truly unknown
When multiple subsystems shift together, how regional impacts can be extrapolated, and whether interventions are still reversible.
Criteria for progress
Long-term observations, paleoclimate records, and mechanistic models converge on the same threshold range.
Editorial label: Evidence developing · high urgencyNow–20 years
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Life & Consciousness
Can there be a testable unified theory of consciousness?
Different theories explain some features of experience, but do not yet share decisive predictions or refutation conditions.
Known anchors
Conscious states correlate reliably with some neural activity, but correlation alone is not a complete explanation.
Truly unknown
How first-person experience can be made comparable with third-person measurement, and which predictions truly distinguish the theories.
Criteria for progress
Competing theories make incompatible predictions in preregistered experiments, and reproducible results rule out at least one explanation.
Editorial label: Competing theories · criteria not yet convergedOpen
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Futures & Unknowns
Is spacetime fundamental or an emergent structure?
Relativity and quantum theory are each precise, yet cannot be unified into a single description at extreme scales.
Known anchors
Both theories have passed high-precision tests within their own domains of validity, and together they define the scales where they conflict.
Truly unknown
The fundamental relationship between spacetime continuity, quantum information, and gravity, and which empirical differences are within reach.
Criteria for progress
Candidate theories make low-energy predictions that black holes, cosmology, or precision measurements can tell apart.
Editorial label: Rich mathematical approaches · little direct evidence30+ years
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Technology & Engineering
Can AI form verifiable world models?
Systems can generate coherent answers, but causal understanding, long-term consistency, and self-calibration still cannot be adequately guaranteed.
Known anchors
Models can already transfer representations across many kinds of tasks, use tools, and carry out planning within a limited scope.
Truly unknown
How much successful behavior comes from generalizable models, and when systems fail under distribution shift.
Criteria for progress
Open, adversarial, cross-environment long-term evaluations can predict real-world failures and support independent replication.
Editorial label: Rapid capability gains · weak verification standards3–10 years
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Mathematics & Computation
How far can complex systems be compressed?
Predictive power is limited on several fronts: computational complexity, initial conditions, observation cost, and model misspecification.
Known anchors
Computability, complexity, and chaos theory have already established several limits, both in principle and in resources.
Truly unknown
Which macroscopic variables in real systems can be reliably compressed, and which details become impossible to ignore again at critical moments.
Criteria for progress
Compressed models stay calibrated across scales and scenarios, and clearly report the conditions under which they lose fidelity.
Editorial label: Some limits known · real-world bounds openOngoing
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Value & Meaning
How can future generations take part in today's decisions?
People not yet born bear the consequences of long-term decisions, yet have no place in current rights, budgets, or governance structures.
Known anchors
Infrastructure, ecological, and fiscal decisions have intergenerational consequences, and several institutions have tried setting up long-term accountability mechanisms.
Truly unknown
How to represent their interests without inventing their preferences, while balancing them against present-day rights and uncertainty.
Criteria for progress
Institutional experiments make their value assumptions public, reduce short-term bias, and show over long-term tracking that they can be corrected.
Editorial label: Clear factual consequences · plural normative choicesNow
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype
Humanity & Society
What shared ethics would a multiplanetary civilization need?
As distance, resources, and evolutionary paths reshape communities, the institutional assumptions of the Earth-bound era may no longer hold.
Known anchors
Space activities already raise practical issues such as planetary protection, resource use, risk allocation, and intergenerational responsibility.
Truly unknown
How rights, responsibilities, and the boundaries of community are rebuilt when communication delays, demands for autonomy, and shared risks coexist.
Criteria for progress
Institutional prototypes for different scenarios expose value conflicts and offer revisable, accountable coordination procedures.
Editorial label: Foresight question · needs many civilizations' perspectives50+ years
0 dedicated sources · 0 independent reviews · Editorial prototype