How many real degrees of freedom hide in messy, dissipative systems?

When a system interacts with an unknown environment, standard methods for counting degrees of freedom break down because energy dissipates and equations aren't reversible. Lausdei and Pajer introduce an algorithm that works directly from equations of motion by constructing dual "advanced" equations, automatically revealing constraints, redundancies, and consistency conditions. The method applies to classical systems ranging from coupled fields to electromagnetism in media and cosmological gravity.