Réjean McCormick

This paper advances a general thesis about human speech: phonemic organization is not psychologically inert. Spoken language does not affect mental and emotional life only through semantic content, explicit self-description, narrative framing, or affective tone. At a more granular level, the micro-structure of speech—the selection, sequencing, recurrence, and distribution of phonemic units within words, phrases, and habitual speech forms—also participates in the expression, stabilization, and possible transformation of mental-emotional patterns. The claim is not that each phoneme has a fixed universal meaning, nor that identical phonemic forms produce identical effects in all speakers. It is rather that phonemic configurations are psychologically consequential features of human linguistic life, even though their specific force is mediated by language, culture, biography, and context. The paper situates this proposal in relation to Saussurean arbitrariness, sound symbolism, psycho-phonetics, speech act theory, phenomenology, narrative identity, affect theory, and recent computational work on segmental speech modeling. It argues that prosodic tone, though important, should be treated here as a secondary variable: the primary object of inquiry is phonemic structure itself. Finally, it outlines a research program in which AI is used not merely to classify emotion from speech, but to model phonemic configurations as combinatorial micro-structures linked to recurring forms of psychic organization and possible therapeutic intervention.

This book offers a philosophical history of metaphysics understood as the search for first principles. Against narratives that reduce it to an archaic survival, a form of methodless speculation, or a mere appendix to theology, it argues that metaphysics constitutes an enduring dimension of human thought: the one that asks what is, what grounds, what unifies, and according to what order reality becomes intelligible. The book follows this question through several major configurations: from ancient cosmologies to the Greek invention of first philosophy, from Indian and Chinese elaborations to the great medieval constructions, from modern systems to the Kantian critique, and then to contemporary reformulations of ontology, time, consciousness, and grounding. It is neither a historical manual nor a manifesto calling for a dogmatic return to metaphysics, but a historical and conceptual essay showing how first questions change form without disappearing. The book’s central thesis is that metaphysics is not defined by a fixed body of doctrines, but by a persistent intellectual function: to clarify the ultimate structures of reality, to distinguish the fundamental from the derivative, and to render the unity of knowledge thinkable without confusing it with the special sciences. Metaphysics thus appears less as an obsolete discipline than as a recurrent demand of the mind. Ce livre propose une histoire philosophique de la métaphysique comprise comme recherche des principes premiers. Contre les récits qui la réduisent à une survivance archaïque, à une spéculation sans méthode ou à une simple annexe de la théologie, il soutient que la métaphysique constitue une dimension durable de la pensée humaine : celle qui demande ce qui est, ce qui fonde, ce qui unifie et selon quel ordre le réel devient intelligible. L’ouvrage suit cette question à travers plusieurs configurations majeures : des cosmologies anciennes à l’invention grecque de la science première, des élaborations indiennes et chinoises aux grandes constructions médiévales, des systèmes modernes à la critique kantienne, puis aux déplacements contemporains de l’ontologie, du temps, de la conscience et du fondement. Il ne s’agit ni d’un manuel historique ni d’un manifeste en faveur d’un retour dogmatique à la métaphysique, mais d’un essai historique et conceptuel montrant comment les questions premières changent de forme sans disparaître. La thèse centrale du livre est que la métaphysique ne se définit pas par un corpus figé de doctrines, mais par une fonction intellectuelle persistante : clarifier les structures ultimes du réel, distinguer le fondamental du dérivé, et rendre pensable l’unité du savoir sans confusion avec les sciences particulières. La métaphysique apparaît ainsi moins comme une discipline révolue que comme une exigence récurrente de l’esprit.

This paper proposes a structural reading of three mathematical constants: e, Pi and i.. I argue that these constants can be associated with three nested forms of mathematical representation that recur across scientific modeling: continuous evolution, cyclic structure, and phase. The claim is not that these constants are the ontological constituents of reality, nor that mathematics by itself settles metaphysical questions. The more limited thesis is that e, Pi and i. mark especially general ways in which reality becomes mathematically intelligible. I first clarify the mathematical roles of the exponential function, circular measure, and complex rotation. I then argue that phase presupposes cyclicity, and cyclicity presupposes continuous variation, yielding a hierarchy of conceptual dependence. Finally, I show how Euler’s formula provides a compact analytical expression of the unity of these three forms. The paper concludes by distinguishing this structural thesis from stronger metaphysical interpretations and by briefly suggesting a possible extension involving the golden ratio.

Modern knowledge and governance infrastructures increasingly rely on opaque digital systems that can impose subtle forms of domination on users and communities. This article argues that freedom as non-domination – in the republican sense of independence from unchecked, arbitrary power – should guide the design of knowledge architectures. It introduces semantic sovereignty as a principle ensuring communities retain control over the creation and interpretation of shared knowledge, rather than being subject to unaccountable algorithmic or corporate authorities. We diagnose how current digital platforms and AI-driven services often engender dependency, opacity, and lack of recourse, undermining epistemic agency and civic legitimacy. In response, we outline a framework of minimal design-ethical norms for just and governable epistemic infrastructures: offline-capable execution, fail-closed integrity safeguards, rigorous auditability, transparency, and inclusive multilingual support. These principles are illustrated through experimental systems (e.g. Konnaxion and its modules EkoH and Smart Vote) that embed non-domination values by design – for example, weighting expertise in decision-making without centralizing power, and enabling local verification of all knowledge artifacts. We conclude that combining republican political theory with information architecture yields actionable criteria for building autonomous, accountable, and equitable knowledge infrastructures that bolster democratic sovereignty in the digital age.

Dividing a circle’s circumference by its diameter releases π, a number born from geometry yet unending in sequence. Pi Theory proposes that this primal cut—unity divided—produces not only an irrational constant but a minimal, self-organizing structure embedded in its earliest digits. By applying a fixed, verifiable decoding (reversal, segmentation, and the A1Z26 alphabet mapping with 0 → O), the first thirty-six digits of π yield six stable blocks: M | BIEN | GIHECEF | JNON | B0UM | 88. These form a concise symbolic sequence: love → good → divide → reunite → create → expand. The method requires no adjustment or belief system; it treats π’s digits as a mechanical text arising from the circle itself. Interpreted immanently, the pattern suggests that the act of division (the circle’s cut) generates both multiplicity and coherence—mirroring how complexity emerges from simple laws. In this view, π is not a message but a model: a natural intersection of mathematics and meaning where geometry, number, and ontology momentarily align. Pi Theory thus reframes π as more than a ratio: it is a self-contained cosmogenesis, showing how the language of mathematics can produce an ordered narrative of reality without invoking transcendence—a brief, reproducible experiment where the circle speaks its own genesis.

Canada’s giving system loses value to rent‑extracting intermediation: platform skims, duplicated back‑office costs, and leadership wage capture. This policy brief proposes a utility‑grade cooperative banking donation rail operated by a credit union and its affiliated registered foundation. Donations move as intrabank transfers with a 0% platform take‑rate, pool into thematic funds, and are allocated by members using approval voting with a 10% quorum. Grants flow only to CRA‑qualified donees and carry a ≤10% administrative‑cost covenant measured at the grant level, with a capped, time‑bound exception path. The rail supplies shared services—receipting, AML/KYC and sanctions screening, standardized grant agreements, reporting, and audits—so grantees maintain program intensity without starving capacity. Governance includes a ≤2× median FTE pay cap for administrators, strict conflict‑of‑interest rules, ballot secrecy, and public dashboards. The brief details the Canadian legal perimeter, operating architecture, phased rollout, KPIs, and risk controls, and offers federal and provincial policy steps to normalize zero‑skim rails and shared‑services models. The contribution is practical: a CRA‑compliant design that increases net‑to‑program dollars, strengthens democratic legitimacy, and can be replicated by other cooperative banks with localized legal mapping.

Ce livre propose une anthropologie messianique et une éthique de l’action sous le motif du chef d’orchestre du réel : dans un monde dissonant, l’autorité véritable consiste à harmoniser des forces éparses plutôt qu’à les dominer. Le cadre défend qu’un Logos opératoire peut être rendu effectif par un double mouvement : (1) un discernement qui accueille signes, intuitions et coïncidences tout en les éprouvant au critère constant de l’amour/justice, afin d’éviter les dérives pseudo-spirituelles ; (2) une stratégie d’action où le Messie agit comme hacker du réel : subversion des « logiciels invisibles » (normes, tabous), alliances fluides, narration symbolique, et modulation de la présence (apparition/retrait) au kairos – le temps opportun. L’ensemble articule une politique du sens : l’autorité se mesure à la capacité d’accorder les volontés vers le bien commun, non à la mise en scène de soi. Le livre conjugue ressources bibliques et comparatives avec des principes opératoires pour le présent, proposant une voie de lucidité, intégrité et efficacité pour celles et ceux qui cherchent à orienter l’histoire vers davantage de justice.

The Book of kOA lays out a manifesto and a systems design for a global, open, and merit-based civic platform—Konnaxion—that turns knowledge into a public utility and translates agreement into action. Grounded in principles such as radical lucidity, transparency in governance / privacy of person, inclusive social mobility, ecological responsibility, and cooperation before competition, the book specifies a modular architecture with four interoperable modules: KonnectED (open education), keenKonnect (collaborative development), Ethikos (merit-weighted deliberation and voting), and Kreative (cultural commons). A cross-cutting backbone, EkoH, provides multidimensional merit, certification, and legitimacy across modules. Use-cases include education reform, justice and prison rehabilitation kiosks, open-knowledge “Kristal Farms,” and governance pilots that combine public participation with expertise via weighted votes. The work argues that when information is open and merit is visible, collaboration outperforms zero-sum competition, enabling ethical, resilient progress at scale. This is both political philosophy (institutional design, legitimacy, equity) and philosophy of technology (AI governance, platform ethics), offering a design-level response to contemporary fragmentation and institutional drag.

AI compute is growing fast, but most new capacity is sited far from clean power and useful heat sinks, locking in high cooling overheads and grid stress. We outline a portable approach that colocates modular, encrypted “black-box” AI containers on standardized lease pads at cold-climate hydropower sites. The host delivers metered power, fiber, and a cooling interface; tenants operate within a strict SLA and retain full data privacy. A simple thermal rule—reuse → storage → reject—routes server heat first to nearby homes and public buildings, then to buffer tanks, and only lastly to air-side (or permitted non-contact water) rejection. Seasonal greenhouses act as a flexible sink in warmer months and downshift in deep winter so households take priority. When renewable headroom and idle compute align, a governance-led “Kristals” layer converts surplus cycles into structured, versioned knowledge units with provenance, granting preferential access to contributors while preserving tenant isolation. Co-governance (including FPIC), transparent metering, and phased deployment make the model replicable. The result is a leasing-first blueprint that turns AI capital into community wealth through pad rent, avoided heating fuel, dignified local jobs, and an open knowledge commons.

Democratic legitimacy requires equal votes. Democratic performance requires informed advice. This paper proposes a parallel, non‑binding advisory channel that aggregates collective intelligence with rule‑based regularity. One person one vote remains unchanged for decisions. The advisory layer is transparent, auditable, and public. Influence in the advisory layer is weighted by domain‑specific merit and moderated by an ethics multiplier. Merit reflects verifiable expertise, practical impact, peer recognition, and knowledge dissemination. Ethics covers honesty, civility, and conflicts of interest. Influence is earned, scoped to relevant fields, decays over time, and never becomes a veto. Minority reports are preserved. AI assists classification, summarization, and forecasting. Humans set and update rules. No machine has decision rights. The model differs from technocracy and epistocracy by keeping authority with elected officials and equal citizens. The paper details safeguards (open rules, versioned parameters, audits, appeals, privacy by design), inclusion pathways (credential‑lite, multilingual, low‑bandwidth access), and risks and mitigations (elite capture, credential bias, gaming, digital divide, “brain drain”). It outlines applications from national to municipal and organizational contexts and proposes evaluation metrics: uptake by officials, ex‑post accuracy, decision latency, participation breadth, trust shifts, and reproducibility.