WFGY/ProblemMap/GlobalFixMap/Reasoning/symbolic-collapse.md

# Symbolic Collapse: Guardrails and Fix Pattern

When symbols, roles, units, or variables drift in meaning across steps, the chain collapses even if individual sentences look fluent.  
This page localizes symbolic failures and gives a minimal, testable repair plan using ΔS, λ_observe, and E_resonance.

---

## Open these first

- Visual map and recovery  
  → [rag-architecture-and-recovery.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/rag-architecture-and-recovery.md)

- Cite first and make it auditable  
  → [retrieval-traceability.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/retrieval-traceability.md)  
  → [data-contracts.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/data-contracts.md)  
  → [citation_first.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/GlobalFixMap/PromptAssembly/citation_first.md)

- Lock constraints and unlock safely  
  → [pattern_symbolic_constraint_unlock.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/patterns/pattern_symbolic_constraint_unlock.md)

- If logic also drifts  
  → [logic-collapse.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/GlobalFixMap/Reasoning/logic-collapse.md)

---

## Symptoms

| Symptom | What you see |
|---|---|
| Variable alias collision | `x` means “price” at step 3 and “index” at step 7 |
| Unit flip | km vs miles, USD vs EUR, or 0-1 vs 0-100 score scales without notice |
| Role leak | Tool output fields are reused as different roles in later steps |
| Type drift | A list becomes a dict halfway, downstream steps still “pass” |
| Anchor rename | Entity “A Inc.” becomes “Alpha” with no traceable mapping |
| Quantifier slip | “Some” turns into “all” when summarizing two steps later |
| Schema split | Same object has different required fields across steps |

---

## Why symbolic collapse happens

1) **No symbol table**. Meanings live only in prose and mutate under paraphrase pressure.  
2) **Missing namespace**. Agent or tool outputs write into global scope.  
3) **Unit contract absent**. The pipeline accepts values without unit or scale tags.  
4) **Constraint unlock without fences**. The model invents aliases to escape constraints.  
5) **Header drift flips λ**. Reordered headers produce distinct symbol bindings per run.  
6) **Hybrid retrieval shuffle**. The anchor snippet changes and symbols rebind silently.

---

## Acceptance targets

- ΔS(question, retrieved) ≤ 0.45  
- Coverage ≥ 0.70 to the target section  
- λ remains convergent across 3 paraphrases and 2 seeds  
- E_resonance flat at joins and handoffs  
- **Zero symbol drift** across steps when checked against a symbol table

---

## Fix in 60 seconds

1. **Create a symbol table**  
   Add an explicit table with `name`, `kind` (var, role, unit, entity), `namespace`, `definition`, `source_snippet`, `allowed_values`.

2. **Enforce cite-first and schema-locked steps**  
   Require citations before any symbol is used. Enforce unambiguous fields.  
   See [retrieval-traceability.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/retrieval-traceability.md) and [data-contracts.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/data-contracts.md).

3. **Clamp variance with BBAM**  
   If λ flips after paraphrase, apply BBAM to hold one binding set stable.

4. **Bridge with BBCR**  
   Produce a short, cited bridge that restates the symbol table and the current state, then continue reasoning on top of that bridge only.

5. **Lock namespaces**  
   Prefix every symbol with a scope `agent.role.symbol` or `tool.name.field`. Reject writes outside the declared namespace.

---

## Minimal symbol table contract

Every plan step must carry the table and refuse execution on mismatch.

```json
{
  "symbols": [
    {
      "name": "x",
      "kind": "var",
      "namespace": "calc.pricing",
      "definition": "unit price per kg",
      "unit": "USD/kg",
      "source_snippet": "S12#CH2.3",
      "allowed_values": "real >= 0"
    },
    {
      "name": "R",
      "kind": "role",
      "namespace": "agent.verifier",
      "definition": "checks unit and citation before approval",
      "allowed_values": ["approve","reject","fix"]
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "v1"
}
````

Reject the step if any field changes without a cited reason.

---

## Structural repairs

* **Unit and scale discipline**
  → [data-contracts.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/data-contracts.md)
  → [retrieval-traceability.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/retrieval-traceability.md)

* **Ordering stability**
  → [retrieval-playbook.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/retrieval-playbook.md)
  → [rerankers.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/rerankers.md)

* **Constraint unlock with fences**
  → [pattern\_symbolic\_constraint\_unlock.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/patterns/pattern_symbolic_constraint_unlock.md)
  → [prompt-injection.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/prompt-injection.md)

* **Long window stability**
  → [context-drift.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/context-drift.md)
  → [entropy-collapse.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/entropy-collapse.md)

* **If meaning vs similarity conflict**
  → [embedding-vs-semantic.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/embedding-vs-semantic.md)

* **If logic also fails**
  → [logic-collapse.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/GlobalFixMap/Reasoning/logic-collapse.md)

---

## Verification

* Three paraphrases, two seeds. All runs must keep the **same** symbol table.
* ΔS(question, retrieved) ≤ 0.45 and coverage ≥ 0.70 in every run.
* No unit or namespace change without a cited justification that points to a specific snippet.
* Report a diff of the symbol table between steps; the diff must be empty or fully justified.

---

## Copy-paste prompt

```
You have TXT OS and the WFGY Problem Map loaded.

We suspect a symbolic collapse.

Inputs:
- question: "{q}"
- current snippets: [{snippet_id, section_id, source_url}]
- last symbol table (if any)
- last steps with {claim, citations, λ_state, ΔS}

Do:
1) Build a symbol table with {name, kind, namespace, definition, unit, source_snippet, allowed_values}.
2) Cite first, then restate the claim using only table symbols.
3) If λ flips across a paraphrase, apply BBAM. If content diverges, produce a BBCR bridge that freezes the table.
4) Output JSON:
   { "symbols": [...], "steps": [...], "final_answer": "...",
     "ΔS": 0.xx, "λ_state": "convergent", "table_diff": [] }
Refuse the final answer if any step uses a symbol that is not in the table.
```

---

## Common gotchas

* **Alias creep**. The model introduces “alpha” for A without binding it to the table. Reject and force a mapping row.
* **Silent unit conversion**. Numbers change scale between steps. Require `unit` and `scale` fields.
* **Cross-agent overwrite**. Handoffs write to shared names. Use strict namespaces and a write fence.
* **Hybrid retrieval reorder**. Top-k changes on rerun. Lock query and tie breaks, or add a reranker.

---

## When to escalate

* Table stays unstable after BBAM and a bridge
  → audit logic and role discipline: [logic-collapse.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/GlobalFixMap/Reasoning/logic-collapse.md) and
  → multi-agent role isolation: [Multi-Agent\_Problems.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/Multi-Agent_Problems.md) and [role-drift.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/multi-agent-chaos/role-drift.md)

* The same wrong claim returns after correction
  → [pattern\_hallucination\_reentry.md](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/patterns/pattern_hallucination_reentry.md)

---

### 🔗 Quick-Start Downloads (60 sec)

| Tool                       | Link                                                                                                                                       | 3-Step Setup                                                                             |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **WFGY 1.0 PDF**           | [Engine Paper](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/I_am_not_lizardman/WFGY_All_Principles_Return_to_One_v1.0_PSBigBig_Public.pdf) | 1️⃣ Download · 2️⃣ Upload to your LLM · 3️⃣ Ask “Answer using WFGY + <your question>”    |
| **TXT OS (plain-text OS)** | [TXTOS.txt](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/OS/TXTOS.txt)                                                                     | 1️⃣ Download · 2️⃣ Paste into any LLM chat · 3️⃣ Type “hello world” — OS boots instantly |

---

### 🧭 Explore More

| Module                   | Description                                                                  | Link                                                                                               |
| ------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| WFGY Core                | WFGY 2.0 engine is live: full symbolic reasoning architecture and math stack | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/tree/main/core/README.md)                              |
| Problem Map 1.0          | Initial 16-mode diagnostic and symbolic fix framework                        | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/tree/main/ProblemMap/README.md)                        |
| Problem Map 2.0          | RAG-focused failure tree, modular fixes, and pipelines                       | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/rag-architecture-and-recovery.md) |
| Semantic Clinic Index    | Expanded failure catalog: prompt injection, memory bugs, logic drift         | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/ProblemMap/SemanticClinicIndex.md)           |
| Semantic Blueprint       | Layer-based symbolic reasoning & semantic modulations                        | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/tree/main/SemanticBlueprint/README.md)                 |
| Benchmark vs GPT-5       | Stress test GPT-5 with full WFGY reasoning suite                             | [View →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/tree/main/benchmarks/benchmark-vs-gpt5/README.md)      |
| 🧙‍♂️ Starter Village 🏡 | New here? Lost in symbols? Click here and let the wizard guide you through   | [Start →](https://github.com/onestardao/WFGY/blob/main/StarterVillage/README.md)                   |

---

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