CLOT: A Protocol for Testing Substrate-Independent Consciousness in Adaptive Systems

The CLOT protocol proposes a perturbation-based framework for investigating substrate-independent signatures of consciousness in adaptive systems. Rather than defining consciousness through internal mechanisms or specific biological substrates, the protocol focuses on measurable behavioural responses to structured perturbations applied across multiple functional dimensions. The framework introduces a battery of experimental perturbations designed to probe integration, persistence, self-referential stability, and adaptive regulation within candidate systems. By examining how systems respond to disruptions across sensory, structural, informational, and environmental domains, the protocol seeks to identify patterns of coordinated recovery and constraint maintenance that distinguish integrated agents from purely reactive or mechanistic processes. CLOT is intended as an experimental protocol rather than a theoretical claim. The methodology is designed to generate falsifiable observations that can be applied to biological organisms, artificial systems, or hybrid substrates. The aim is to provide a reproducible procedure for evaluating whether adaptive systems exhibit signatures consistent with integrated conscious processing, while remaining neutral with respect to underlying physical implementation.