{
  "abstract": "Group interactions are widespread, and higher-order extensions of familiar models display collective phenomena absent from their pairwise baselines, which are routinely offered as evidence of a distinct higher-order physics. We ask whether that claim survives the test that gives new a precise meaning in statistical physics: that of universality. Revisiting canonical higher-order models, we argue that what classifies collective behavior are the infrared ingredients that survive at long scales. Arity is not a universality label. Beyond universality, we examine two further questions: whether higher-order structure is a fact about the system or a choice of description, and what data can and cannot tell us about interaction order. Higher-order descriptions remain indispensable when they expose the organizing structure, provide a better mechanistic language, or improve prediction. We close with what should be measured before new phenomena can be claimed, and where higher-order structure already earns its place.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2609.20759",
  "author_total": 2,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Pablo Villegas"
    },
    {
      "name": "Sandro Meloni"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/877gj2g92w9hv.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2609.20759",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "877gj2g92w9hv",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.20759",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.stat-mech"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "physics.soc-ph"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3104|Theoretical and Computational Physics"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213611748",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2609.20759",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-17",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/877gj2g92w9hv.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:22:19Z",
      "native_id": "2609.20759",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.20759"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.stat-mech",
      "subfield": "statistical-nonlinear"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Is higher-order physics different?",
  "title_text": "Is higher-order physics different?",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:22:19Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/877gj2g92w9hv",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}