If the algebraic fine structure constant α⁻¹ = 137.035999177 (Carpenter, 2026s) is treated as exact — the source of truth, not a prediction to be validated — then every deviation in a measured constant becomes a diagnosable systematic with a traceable root cause. This paper demonstrates the method and applies it to the full variance register. We recompute every α-dependent CODATA 2018 fundamental constant using the algebraic α, holding all α-independent inputs at their CODATA values. Every α-dependent constant shows a coherent ~4.4σ offset. Every α-independent constant agrees to <0.01σ. The pattern is not noise — it is a single systematic, amplified through every derived quantity. Root-cause analysis identifies the source: Parker et al. (2018), a Cs-133 recoil measurement that disagrees with all other modern α determinations by 5.5σ, was included in CODATA 2018's global fit. It pulled the adjusted α low by ~0.7 ppb (4.4σ relative to CODATA's stated uncertainty). Because every α-dependent constant inherits the fit, one bad input corrupts the entire table. The 2022 CODATA adjustment (Tiesinga et al., 2025) validated this diagnosis. Parker was downweighted; Morel (2020) and Fan (2023) were incorporated. The adjusted α⁻¹ shifted by +93 in the last three digits — from 137.035999084(21) to 137.035999177(21) — converging to the algebraic value exactly. Every α-dependent constant moved in the direction and by the magnitude this analysis specified. The method is then extended beyond Parker. Every remaining variance in the diagnostic programme is root-caused: the proton-to-electron mass ratio (133σ) is resolved to 0.01σ by a fourth-order correction with rational coefficient 22/27; the Morel Rb-87 offset (2.7σ) is diagnosed as a predicted recoil systematic; the Parker Cs-133 deficit (4.8σ) is identified as a species-specific systematic common to all Cs measurements; and the gravitational constant G (0.37σ) is shown to be limited by measurement precision, not formula precision. A head-to-head comparison of Fan's electron g−2 extraction and the Carpenter algebra demonstrates that both agree to 0.3σ, but the algebra has zero empirical inputs, zero theory dependencies, and identified the Parker systematic before CODATA did.
Jay Andrew Carpenter (Sun,) studied this question.