The Gravity of Grammar: Binary Inertia and the Distortion of Epistemic Calibration

Language acts as a cognitive constraint, creating an inertia that pulls fallible, scalar thoughts toward binary assertions. This paper argues that the grammar of natural languages forces speakers to collapse gradient epistemic states into discrete ontological claims. While the human mind operates on an "Analog Epistemology" of probabilities, our linguistic tools are "Digital," constructed around the Law of Excluded Middle. This mismatch creates a "Binary Inertia" that distorts discourse and obscures calibration. Furthermore, we argue that even softening approaches like "provisional adoption"-while pragmatically useful-remain dangerously tethered to the binary structure. True epistemic resolution requires a more radical embrace of scalar uncertainty, where provisional stances are recognized merely as functional compression artifacts, not accurate reflections of cognitive states. 2 Contents.