Cosmic Metabolism and Observational Scale Calibration: A Unified Alternative Framework for the Hubble Tension, Early Galaxy Paradox, and Dark Energy via Scale Factor χ = 11.2

This paper proposes a minimalist cosmological correction model based on the Variable Constant Axiom. By auditing the Hubble Tension (an 8.3% observational discrepancy), we derive a universal scale decay factor χ ≈ 11.2. We propose that cosmological redshift contains a component arising from the historical evolution of measurement standards (the speed of light c), in addition to metric expansion — the photon arrives intact; what changes is the ruler. Under this framework, dark energy and dark matter may be partially explained as systematic projection artefacts arising from mismatched observational scales, rather than physical entities. The Big Bang singularity is reinterpreted as a mathematical extrapolation that may not fully account for scale-dependent ruler drift. Applying χ = 11.2 recalibration to JWST high-redshift data offers a potential resolution to the Early Galaxy Paradox. We propose an empirical audit of long-term atomic clock residuals for a predicted systematic drift of ~6 × 10⁻¹² per year. All conclusions are presented as testable hypotheses pending independent verification.