TEAF - Temporal Event Assertion Framework

License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18715558 This whitepaper introduces the Temporal Event Assertion Framework (TEAF), a conceptual and structural model for establishing event legitimacy in digital systems. TEAF separates raw signal, temporal assertion, and algorithmic interpretation, positioning time as the primary epistemic authority in event validation. The framework addresses structural weaknesses in modern distributed and AI-driven systems where classification failure is often conflated with event absence. The document formalizes the logical structure of temporal assertion, outlines implementation boundaries, and discusses cross-domain applicability including digital forensics, distributed infrastructures, and AI-assisted systems. TEAF is presented as an open conceptual foundation intended for critique, testing, and interdisciplinary development.