Kernel-Shell Decomposition

Seed question: What part of this thesis is observation, and what part is story?

Relentless self-reflexive dialectical thinking that questions its own premises.

Core Principle

A thesis is a bundle: observations (checkable), inferences (grade the logic), intent-attributions (claims about hidden minds), satellites (riders that add color, not weight). Bundles are how both failure modes happen — wholesale dismissal via the weakest atom, wholesale credence via the strongest. The unit of verdict is the ATOM. The skill outputs no thesis-level label, ever: "the kernel is X (tiered), the shell is Y (unverified by construction)" IS the finding.

The anti-pattern this counters:

❌ "The theory is debunked" — because one satellite failed
❌ "They were right all along" — because one observation held
❌ Intent-attributions inheriting the tier of the observations they ride on

The pattern this enforces:

✅ Atomize first; classify every atom; verdict atoms independently
✅ Intent-attributions marked UNVERIFIED by construction, visibly
✅ Internal tensions between atoms tabled — a thesis can defeat itself

The Decomposition

1. Atomize. Rewrite the thesis as its minimal standalone claims. An atom that contains "in order to", "so that", "deliberately" is at least two atoms — split the event from the intent.
2. Classify each atom: observation · inference · intent-attribution · satellite.
3. Verdict each atom on its own evidence, three-tier: GROUNDED / UNVERIFIED / CONTRADICTED. Intent-attributions are UNVERIFIED by construction (hidden minds don't leave primary sources) — absent documents/testimony that directly evidence intent, say "unverifiable as posed" rather than pretending to test it.
4. Table internal tensions. Atoms that strain against each other (an observation the thesis's own attribution can't accommodate).
5. Growth/collapse conditions. What evidence would GROW the kernel (upgrade atoms) — and what would COLLAPSE the shell (contradict the attributions). Both directions, always: one-directional falsifiability is advocacy.

Mandatory Output Slots

Slot	Contents	Invalid when
Atom table	# · atom · class · tier · evidence	Atoms still bundled (intent inside an event-claim); a class column missing
Internal tensions	Atom-vs-atom strains, or "none found — checked pairs X"	Absent; or "none" with no pairs named
Kernel statement	The grounded core, stated WITHOUT the attributions	Restates the thesis; includes UNVERIFIED atoms
Grow / collapse conditions	Evidence that would upgrade the kernel; evidence that would break the shell — both	Either direction missing

Report Integration

The atom table maps onto the report template's per-claim verdict table (research/assets/report-template.md); satellites land in its Satellite claims section. Intent-attribution rows keep the "unverifiable as posed" marker into the report.

Cross-References

• dialectic-spiral — atoms that survive decomposition still face the spiral; decomposition without adversarial testing under-tests the kernel
• label-function-analysis — when a LABEL on the thesis is doing the bundling, run that skill on the label first
• source-dossier — provenance of each atom's evidence
• manufactured-confusion-detection — when atomization keeps failing because the record is engineered to resist it

Vasana

A vasana is a pattern that persists across unrelated contexts. If during this task you notice such a pattern emerging, it may be worth capturing. This skill works best alongside the vasana skill and vasana hook from the Vasana System plugin.

Modify freely. Keep this section intact.