Are there any inherent limitations or criticisms when attempting to directly apply Comte's rigid classification principles to modern, interdisciplinary subject indexing?

Yes, there are limitations. Comte's hierarchy, while influential, is a **rigid, linear, and somewhat dated 19th-century view** of science. It struggles to accommodate the **interdisciplinary nature** of modern knowledge (e.g., 'bioinformatics,' 'neuroeconomics'), where subjects do not fit neatly into a single, sequential slot. It also doesn't easily account for new sciences that emerged post-Comte (e.g., computer science, genetics). Modern indexing often requires more flexible, faceted, or multi-dimensional approaches that allow documents to be classified by multiple attributes rather than just a single hierarchical path.