# Initial Research

This folder preserves the reasoning that led to the current Objective Guard design. Documents are maintained as historical record and are not silently rewritten to match later decisions.

## Inventory

| Document | Historical role |
| --- | --- |
| [PRD Objective Guard v0](prd-objective-guard-v0.md) | First comprehensive control plane sketch, contract-oriented, impact and evidence focused. |
| [PRD Vigía v0](prd-vigia-v0.md) | Incremental counterpoint: push reflection, zero ceremony, and sub-second latency. |
| [Disclosure draft](post-linkedin-u-valley.md) | Historical post derived from the first thesis; contains claims that require caveats from later reviews. |
| [Research Fable](research-fable-agents-u-curve.md) | Theoretical model of the U-curve and the relationship between required and effective context. |
| [Experimental protocol](research-protocol-agent-drift.md) | Falsifiable hypotheses, controls, metrics, and experiments. |
| [Codex review on Fable](review-codex-research-fable-agents-u-curve.md) | Audit of claims, sources, and mathematical transfers. |
| [Cross review](cross-review-fable-vs-codex.md) | Adversarial synthesis and mandate to merge theory, product, and science. |
| [Adversarial prompt](adversarial-review-prompt.md) | Procedure used to compare research. |

## Inherited conclusions

- The U-curve is a plausible observation, still confounded; not a proven fact.
- Raw repository size is an insufficient explanation.
- Existing structure and new constraints are not equivalent: one can reduce context; the other can increase it.
- Iterative degradation does have relevant evidence.
- Deterministic signals can operate from day one.
- Statistical signals require passive observation, calibration, and validation before intervening.
- The product should be built as a ladder: cheap reflection, contracts, incremental impact, and scientific evidence.

## Superseded decisions

The names "Vigía" and "Objective Guard" no longer represent rival products. Objective Guard is the product; the immediate reflection is its cheapest execution level.

The PRD v0 is not the current specification. The current definition lives in [product documentation](../product/01-vision-and-thesis.md).