core/docs/adr/ADR-0238-GoldTether-Modulated-Supervised-Autonomy.md

ADR-0238: GoldTether-Modulated Supervised Autonomy + Dynamic Pseudoscalar Floor

Status: Proposed
Date: 2026-07-11
Branch: r&d/generalized-agent
Parent tracking: #10 · Issue #11
Owners: CORE Labs / R&D
Canonical path: docs/adr/ (not historical docs/decisions/)

Related:

• ADR-0010 Identity Physics
• ADR-0006 Field Energy (distinct residual namespace)
• ADR-0055 / ADR-0056 / ADR-0080 Contemplation + reviewed promotion
• ADR-0175 Calibrated Attempt-and-Eliminate
• ADR-0199 Cross-Domain Learning Arena (GoldTether protocol — different contract)
• ADR-0239 Conformal Procrustes + Surprise Dual
• ADR-0240 Analogical Transfer + Biography Holonomy

Depends on: Cl(4,1) closure (algebra/versor.py), manifold slerp (algebra/rotor.py)

Acceptance path: green tests/test_adr_0238_goldtether.py + smoke/algebra lanes + Josh review.

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1. Context

CORE needs a coherence tether that modulates autonomy without violating HITL defaults, one-mutation-path review, or algebraic closure. Issue #10/#11 name this the GoldTether-modulated supervised autonomy envelope with a dynamic grade-5 pseudoscalar floor.

Dual ontology (mastery refinement)

Name	ADR	Contract
Arena GoldTether	ADR-0199	is_correct / gold_answer — independent truth for practice scoring
Coherence GoldTether	this ADR	residual + dynamic floor + practice/serve autonomy bands

Shared metaphor (gold as anchor). Different types, different modules. Implementation lives in core/physics/goldtether.py as GoldTetherMonitor / CoherenceResidual — never shadows core.learning_arena.protocols.GoldTether.

Problem

Without a geometric autonomy envelope, either:

1. autonomy is premature (unsafe serve-path self-action), or
2. supervision is unstructured (no residual, no floor, no dual-correction blend).

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2. Decision

2.1 Harmonized residual

drift            = |ps(current) − ps(reference)|  (grade-5 / magnitude)
geometric_distance = || reverse(ref) * current − 1 ||_F
combined         = w_drift * drift + (1 − w_drift) * normalize(geo)
kappa            = 1 / (1 + combined / floor)     # monotone; scales blend only

Named config only: decay_N, w_drift, floor_init, critical_ratio, practice_autonomy_enabled, serve_supervised_blend_authorized.

Residual namespaces (non-negotiable):

• ADR-0006 EnergyProfile.coherence_residual — thermodynamic class input
• ADR-0238 CoherenceResidual.combined — autonomy tether
• ADR-0239 procrustes_residual / surprise residual — structural transfer

Do not conflate.

2.2 Dynamic pseudoscalar floor

• Initialized at floor_init (primal retained forever under decay).
• Updated only on practice successes with residual < current floor.
• Decay window decay_N keeps recent residuals; floor never drops below half primal.
• Serve mode never promotes the floor.
• Telemetry schema: goldtether_coherence_v1 (value, sign, n_samples, recent_residuals, config).

2.3 Autonomy envelope

Band	Condition	Practice	Serve
AUTONOMOUS	R < floor	only if practice_autonomy_enabled	never
SUPERVISED_BLEND	R ≤ critical	default below/mid band	only if serve_supervised_blend_authorized
FAIL_CLOSED	R > critical or serve default	yes	default

HITL phase-out is a measured curve, not a flag flip. Self-review gates are documented; they are not auto-proven by this ADR.

2.4 Supervised blend (dual-correction)

R = word_transition_rotor(source, target)   # = target * reverse(source)
R^α = rotor_power(R, α)
out = R^α * source                          # Spin left-composition
assert versor_condition(out) < 1e-6
# α=0 → source; α=1 → target (unit versors)

Mastery correction: sandwich conjugation R^α * source * reverse(R^α) is the wrong geodesic for state interpolation (it maps the identity to itself). Left composition on the rotor group is the dual-correction surface that lands exactly on the endpoints.

No Euclidean lerp on multivector coefficients. No hot-path unitize repair.

2.5 Implementation surface

• Module: core/physics/goldtether.py
• Types: GoldTetherConfig, CoherenceResidual, AutonomyBand, AutonomyDecision, PseudoscalarFloorState, GoldTetherMonitor, OperatingMode
• Proof tests: tests/test_adr_0238_goldtether.py

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3. Consequences

Positive

• Geometry-first autonomy modulation without stochastic fallback.
• Serve remains fail-closed by default (HITL preserved).
• Pseudoscalar floor is a first-class telemetry channel for lifelong coherence curves.
• Explicit dual ontology prevents Arena vs Coherence confusion under review.

Risks / mitigations

Risk	Mitigation
Residual conflation with energy residual	Distinct type names + ADR text + tests
Premature autonomy	practice_autonomy_enabled=False default; serve never autonomous
Drift repair disguised as blend	Blend only via rotor_power / transition rotors

Non-goals

• Auto-promotion of SPECULATIVE → COHERENT
• Replacing ADR-0199 arena GoldTether
• Approximate recall or sampling

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4. Proof obligations

• G-1 Replay: identical (current, reference, config, sequence) → identical residual/floor/decision telemetry.
• G-2 Closure: every supervised_blend output has versor_condition < 1e-6.
• G-3 Serve never returns AUTONOMOUS.
• G-4 Floor updates only on practice success below floor.
• G-5 Arena GoldTether protocol tests remain green unchanged.