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Abstract - Platonic Projection Structures: Operator-Induced Observability in Representation Learning
We characterize observability in representation learning through Platonic Projection Structures (PPS), an operator-theoretic framework for analyzing representation accessibility under partial observation. Rather than treating observable outputs as direct reflections of latent representations, PPS models observation through a self-adjoint positive semidefinite operator acting on a latent representation space. A system is represented as a triple $(H, \Pi, O)$, where $H$ is a latent representation space, $\Pi \succeq 0$ is an observation operator, and $O(v)=\langle v,\Pi v\rangle$ defines an induced scalar observable. Observability is characterized by the quotient geometry $H/\ker(\Pi)$, representing equivalence classes of latent states indistinguishable under observation. We show that quantum measurement and representation inference under linear observation models share this operator-theoretic structure while differing in the algebraic properties of their observation operators; the correspondence is structural rather than physical. Representation transfer and knowledge distillation can likewise be interpreted as approximate preservation of observable geometry through $\Phi \Pi_T \approx \Pi_S \Phi$. PPS also reveals a structural limitation of output-based interpretability: latent components in $\ker(\Pi)$ are inaccessible from induced observables, imposing intrinsic constraints on attribution and explanation methods. Controlled empirical validations demonstrate kernel-invariant observability, projection-induced attribution gaps, and rank-controlled observable geometry in latent representation spaces. PPS thus provides an explicit characterization of observability through operator-induced quotient geometry and a unified perspective on representation accessibility, interpretability, and projection-mediated inference.
柏拉图投影结构:表示学习中由算子引发的可观测性 /
Platonic Projection Structures: Operator-Induced Observability in Representation Learning
1️⃣ 一句话总结
本文提出了一个名为“柏拉图投影结构”的数学框架,通过一个正定算子来解释我们如何从部分观察中理解一个系统的隐藏表示(例如神经网络内部状态)——它就像是一个过滤器,只有通过这个过滤器透出的部分才是我们能观察到的,而其他被阻挡的部分则永远无法直接得知,这从根本上限制了模型的解释性和知识迁移能力。