The Design Claim Admissibility Test (DCAT) - A Procedural Framework for Evaluating Design Inferences

The Design Claim Admissibility Test (DCAT) is a procedural framework that establishes four sequential gates for evaluating when "design" can be reasonably admitted as a candidate explanation for physical systems. By grounding design inferences in known reference classes and requiring consistent, pre-defined criteria, DCAT applies reasoned, consistent evidentiary standards to design claims. The framework demonstrates that biological systems and sophisticated design arguments fail these necessary conditions, revealing design inference to be a local, substrate-dependent conclusion rather than a universal explanatory tool.