PRE-REGISTRATION: Boundary Loss and Geometry

## Note on Pre-Registration Methodology As an independent researcher without institutional infrastructure, traditional pre-registration platforms requiring institutional email verification were inaccessible. Additionally, public pre-registration of novel hypotheses creates "scooping" vulnerability for unfunded researchers racing against institutional labs. To balance scientific rigor with practical constraints, cryptographic timestamping (OpenTimestamps, Bitcoin blockchain) was employed to create immutable proof that hypotheses were specified before data collection, while keeping protocols private until publication. This approach maintains the core value of pre-registration—preventing post-hoc hypothesis generation and p-hacking—while protecting against exploitation. The timestamp file is publicly available and independently verifiable, providing the same evidentiary value as traditional pre-registration platforms.