The Emergence Machine

cold feet · threshold

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the parameter of willingness within a coupling drifts toward its lower wall so that the maintenance required to keep the coupling inside its window exceeds the available energy capacity, causing hesitation

Cold feet (verb) means: the parameter of willingness within a coupling drifts toward its lower wall so that the maintenance required to keep the coupling inside its window exceeds the available energy capacity, causing hesitation. It emerges from parameter, drift, wall, window: as the willingness parameter drifts toward its wall, the upkeep needed to stay within the window grows beyond the energy capacity. In the EmergenceLexicon it sits at computed level 20, chaining down to the four foundations (space, time, energy, pattern).

cold-feet.threshold · forms: cold feet

ordinarily means: to feel nervous and hesitate before committing to something

Emergence

from: parameter drift wall window maintenance energy coupling
through: as the willingness parameter drifts toward its wall, the upkeep needed to stay within the window grows beyond the energy capacity

Chain to foundations

touchL3 touch.together: When there is no space between the boundaries of two things, and each can change the other.energyL0 energy.capacity: That by which things can be not as they were.driftL11 drift.aimless: Change of a parameter with nothing that makes it go one way.contactL4 contact.physical: When two things are at the same place in space during time and their boundaries touch.boundaryL2 boundary.limit: The place where a thing ends and what is not the thing begins.forceL12 force.push: a press of matter that results in a change in motionwindowL7 window.range: The range of a parameter within which a thing can be; outside it the thing ends though its parts persist.parameterL4 parameter.condition: A condition of a thing that can change while the thing persists.flowL3 flow.movement: Motion of many parts of matter together through one place.arrangementL3 arrangement.spatial: a structure of parts in space.setsL3 sets.grouped: A pattern of many things that are each different from the others but are bounded together by what is the same about them.differenceL1 difference.relation: When one thing is not the same as another; the pattern of one is not the pattern of the other.persistL1 persist.continue: To be the same through time.motionL2 motion.movement: Change of place: a thing is here, and after, it is there.amountL8 amount.quantity: the quantity of a thing is a size or a numberstructureL2 structure.arrangement: The pattern of how the parts of a thing are placed in space.surfaceL4 surface.exterior: A part of a boundary that touches a thing and is where the thing is not the thing.linksL8 links.connection: a thing that connects two thingsconnectsL7 connects.verb: When two things are brought together so that a flow between them can happen and persist.broughtL6 brought.past-tense: To come to a place carrying a thing that was not there before.goL3 go.movement: to move one from a place to another placenothingL10 nothing.absence: not a thingsizeL2 size.measurement: the space that a thing's matter is inwayL9 way.method: a link of one place to another through spacechangeL1 change.process: When a thing is not the same after as it was before.keepL5 keep.maintenance: to make something persist in a place or stateoutsideL6 outside.spatial: the space that is not inside a thing's boundarymarksL5 marks.visual: A difference that is a pattern on a surface when a part changes that surface.workL3 work.effort: a change that happens when energy moves something through spacehappenL2 happen.event-occurrence: A change that is at some place during time.stateL2 state.condition: a pattern of a thing that persists through time in a placematterL1 matter.substance: A pattern of energy that is in one place in space through time.partL1 part.relation: Something that is in a thing but is not all of that thing.interactionL2 interaction.process: When two things change each other.insideL5 inside.spatial: in the space that is within an object's boundarycontrolL4 control.ability: A pattern that persists through time and sets boundaries for how others can change.comeL3 come.arrive: To move through space until being at some place.patternL0 pattern.regularity: That which is the same again: what is here is also there, or what is now was also before.pressL5 press.force: to move an object until it is in contact with a surfacewallL14 wall.range-end: The value of a parameter at which a window ends.noneL9 none.quantity: no amount of a thingquantityL7 quantity.numerical: the size of how many things are in a spaceconditionL3 condition.state: a state of a thing that persists through time in a placeobjectL4 object.entity: A thing that has a boundary and an arrangement of parts that persists through time in a place.offL2 off.state: when a thing is not here, it is therespaceL0 space.extent: Where things can be: that in which one thing is here and another is there, apart.timeL0 time.dimension: The before and after of things: that in which a thing can be, and then not be the same.distinctL3 distinct.attribute: a thing is not the same as another thingrangeL3 range.spatial: the space between two boundariescarryingL5 carrying.transporting: To move with a thing that is in one place and then is in another, where the thing remains in contact and under control.numberL6 number.quantity: a mark of many distinct others together in a placecold feetL20 cold-feet.threshold: the parameter of willingness within a coupling drifts toward its lower wall so that the maintenance required to keep the coupling inside its window exceeds the available energy capacity, causing hesitationmaintenanceL14 maintenance.upkeep: Work that holds the parameters of a thing inside its window.couplingL6 coupling.connection: When two things are joined so each can affect the other.othersL2 others.distinct-entities: Things that are in space and time but not the same thing as one, or not the same pattern as one.makeL4 make.verb: Parts come together through interaction into a structure and persist in that pattern.holdL13 hold.physical: keep thing with touch and force so it does not move
full chain as text (205 steps)

Neighborhood

Concepts that depend on this one above; what it is built from below.

built fromcold feetL20cold-feet.threshold — the parameter of willingness within a coupling drifts toward its lower wall so that the maintenance required to keep theparameterL4parameter.condition — A condition of a thing that can change while the thing persists.driftL11drift.aimless — Change of a parameter with nothing that makes it go one way.wallL14wall.range-end — The value of a parameter at which a window ends.windowL7window.range — The range of a parameter within which a thing can be; outside it the thing ends though its parts persist.maintenanceL14maintenance.upkeep — Work that holds the parameters of a thing inside its window.energyL0energy.capacity — That by which things can be not as they were.couplingL6coupling.connection — When two things are joined so each can affect the other.

Provenance

author: phrases:openai/gpt-oss-120b · date: 2026-07-29 · confidence: 0.7 · source: folk phrase — bonds and their maintenance