This paper proposes a unified physical framework based on a light-speed refresh network of fundamental space units. In this model, space is composed of discrete units that distribute a fixed refresh budget between two orthogonal channels, settlement and propagation. Time is reinterpreted as the accumulated readout of the settlement fraction, gravity arises from spatial gradients of the settlement field, and electromagnetic structure emerges from the exchange of refresh flux between the two channels. Quantum phenomena are interpreted as consequences of propagation phases in which local time is nearly frozen, while stable structures arise from closure conditions of phase cycles. Mass is defined as the geometric readout of encapsulation length and acts as the source of the settlement field that produces gravitational effects. Within this framework, electromagnetism, gravitation, quantum behavior, and nuclear phenomena are interpreted as different manifestations of a single refresh-budget structure, and fundamental constants are understood as hierarchical readouts of this underlying network.
Zhang et al. (2026) studied this question.