The Architecture of Decoding: A Proposed Taxonomy of Independent Information Processing Channels

We propose a taxonomy of ten independent information decoding channels grounded in a six-tier processing architecture extending established frameworks by Searle (1980), Lakoff and Johnson (1980), and Baddeley (2000). Each channel is characterized by its active processing tiers, clinical failure mode, positive vocabulary, and at least one specific operational task with a predicted outcome — revealing a systematic pattern in which failure modes are named and healthy functions are not. The taxonomy generates two high-impact predictions: first, that adult prose reading difficulty frequently reflects a configuration-dependent competition for central executive resources rather than capacity loss — individuals whose central executive background load configuration is less compatible with symbolic-text processing face higher displacement cost, independently of general cognitive ability; second, that somatic grounding accumulated through embodied developmental history is a structural requirement for genuine semantic construction, with implications for artificial general intelligence developed in companion work. Together these predictions open empirical research programs in cognitive assessment, adult literacy support, and clinical diagnosis of tier-specific processing failures.