Universal Cognitive Move Registry (UCMR)
The Future of Human Intelligence (HI)
"Discovering a new cognitive Move in systems thinking is “comparable to identifying a new species in biology or a new molecule in chemistry — a novel structural configuration composed of the atomic elements of thought defined by DSRP." - Dr. Derek Cabrera
What are Mental (Cognitive) Moves?
Mental Moves are the molecular building blocks of thought—repeatable actions you can learn and practice to turn information into meaning.
At their atomic core are DSRP-483 (Distinctions, Systems, Relationships, Perspectives)—the universal patterns of thinking that give us a visual, verbal, tactile, object-oriented grammar of thought. Moves = molecules built from these atoms.
Like fitness exercises, every Move has a starting position → ending position, can be mapped and quantified in a consistent visual language, and can be trained for reps.
Why this matters now
In an age of information abundance, the scarce skill is organization. Without a library of Moves, there’s no real curriculum—only content. With Moves, we can build an O-based (organization-based) Pre-K → PhD curriculum that makes thinking visible, teachable, and measurable.
The Pareto Law of Six Moves
A small set covers most use-cases—about 80% of everyday thinking:
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Is/Is Not List — sharpen precision
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Zoom In — see details
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Zoom Out — see context
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Part Party! — map relationships
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RDS Barbell — examine what’s inside a relationship
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Perspective Circle — shift points of view
Think of these as the big-move exercises of cognition (push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, squats, curls, dips). The Registry includes additional, more specialized Moves.
What makes something a Move?
Test | A Move Is… | Not a Move If… |
|---|---|---|
Overwhelmingly O | (I-requirements / O-structures) < 0.25; structure dominates information | Requires substantive domain facts or empirical testing |
Mappable State Change | Produces a before → after change in organizational state (ΔO) that can be mapped with DSRP objects | No real structural change (only description, relabeling, or 'can be' claims) |
Reduces Possibility Space | Forces a specific structural commitment, excluding other valid DSRP configurations | Leaves options open or expands options |
Skill Property | Can be done well or poorly and improves with practice | Cannot meaningfully fail |
Common | Appears recurrently in real use across people or contexts (not a one-off permutation) | Novel-but-arbitrary permutation with no evidence of recurring use |
Dimension | Atomic Move | Molecular Move |
|---|---|---|
Plain meaning | Forced by DSRP | Chosen by humans |
Source | Entailed by DSRP patterns, elements, and dynamics (equality, co-implication, simultaneity, enclosure) | Constructed by non-entailed orchestration of atomic dynamics |
Choice required | No | Yes |
New move eligibility | No | Yes |
Discovery credit | Part of DSRP discovery | Human discovery credit |
Catalog status | Included if pedagogically useful | Included |
What it looks like | Automatic element/dynamic completions | Stable, reusable organizational configurations |
Quick test | If DSRP would generate it anyway → atomic | If someone had to invent the configuration → molecular |
The Registry
The UCMR is the official record of validated Moves and the backbone of an O-based learning pathway.
Current recognized Moves: 204
Submit a New Move
Think you’ve found a new Move?
• Only complete, structurally validated applications are reviewed.
• You must be a certified PST®.
• Apply: stsi.pro/newmove
Resubmission Policy
Applicants may resubmit after at least 30 days, but no more than two times per year for the same proposed Move. Resubmissions must demonstrate substantive structural revision rather than minor wording changes.
UCMR Committee
The Universal Cognitive Move Registry (UCMR) Committee is made up of members of the STSI Science Board