Abstract

Abstract The Recursive-Collapse-Recombination (RCR) Model is a metastable, autopoietic, non-hierarchical, non-binary, and non-linear framework that defines reality as a continuously generative process. It describes how recursion (self-reinforcing structures), collapse (destabilization and phase shifts), and recombination (adaptive restructuring) interact to produce emergent, dynamic systems. Unlike equilibrium-based models, RCR establishes metastability as the core condition of reality, ensuring ongoing transformation rather than static resolution. The model is mathematically formalized to apply across domains, from physics and cognitive science to social structures and AI systems. By framing reality as an interplay of recursion, collapse, and recombination, RCR reveals why deterministic reductionism fails and why reality remains an open-ended generative structure rather than a closed, finite system. Keywords Recursive-Collapse-Recombination (RCR) Metastability Phase Transitions Nonlinear Systems Emergence Self-Organization Autopoiesis Indeterminacy Reality Structuring Generative Systems --- License (CC BY 4.0) This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). ✔ Share — Copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format. ✔ Adapt — Remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially. Attribution Requirement: You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. This must be done in a reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests endorsement by the original author. No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.