Stress-Testing an Emergent Framework: Robustness Analysis of the GEP / T-ToE / TIO Program

This paper documents a systematic stress test of the Granular Entropic Potential (GEP) framework and its associated Thermodynamic Theory of Emergence (T-ToE) and Thermodynamic Imperative of Order (TIO). Rather than presenting the framework as a completed theory or claiming empirical validation, the work focuses on robustness: whether the internal logic, assumptions, and explanatory structure remain consistent when subjected to sustained conceptual and comparative pressure. The analysis deliberately targets regimes where established physical frameworks are known to encounter limitations or rely on auxiliary assumptions, including intermediate cosmological states, starless dark-matter-dominated structures, entropy-driven suppression of structure formation, and the emergence of order under global thermodynamic constraints. Comparative tables are used to contrast how standard paradigms and the GEP/TIO framework respond to these challenges. The purpose of this work is not to demonstrate correctness, but to provide a transparent account of where the framework remains coherent, where it is incomplete, and where open questions persist. By publishing the stress-testing process itself, including unresolved issues, the paper aims to support open, critical evaluation and to clarify the scope within which the GEP/T-ToE/TIO program may warrant further investigation.