The Trident: A Trilemmatic Decomposition Framework for Claim Analysis

Abstract This paper formalizes a dialectical technique for claim analysis termed the Trident. The method decomposes any claim into three mutually exclusive forks, each of which either (a) reduces to absurdity through logical extension, (b) contradicts the claimant's implicit commitments, or (c) retreats to unfalsifiable vagueness. Key Features Constructive falsifiability: A claim survives the Trident if and only if all three forks preserve coherence Not mere skepticism: Distinguished from pyrrhonism by the constructive survival condition Cross-domain: Worked examples in philosophical, political, and scientific claims Epistemic hygiene: Offered as diagnostic instrument, not a theory of truth Links ASCRI: systems.ac/4/DP-2601 Research Lab: Dissensus AI v2.0.0 (2026-07-11): Quantum worked example added to §7 (pre-emptive scoping as a third survival route, applied to the oscillatory-sampling Born-rule claim); §7 preamble and non-vacuity synthesis updated (three routes, five examples); bibliography extended.