| name | boundary-condition-specification |
| description | SOP: Specify the boundary conditions under which a hypothesis holds |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| category | hypothesis-formation |
| type | sop |
| campaign | hypothesis-formulation |
| input | Hypothesis draft (with statement + variables + mechanism) |
| output | Boundary condition list (temporal/spatial/population/conditional/exclusions) |
| dependencies | {"skills":["subagent-spawning"]} |
Boundary Condition Specification
Systematically identify the preconditions required for a hypothesis to hold, preventing overgeneralization.
HARD-GATE
Preconditions (all must hold before starting):
1. At least 1 hypothesis draft is available (with statement and mechanism)
2. The hypothesis involves identifiable entities, time, or context
Not satisfied → stop and return error: hypothesis draft incomplete, cannot determine boundary conditions.
Pipeline
- Precondition check: verify completeness of the hypothesis draft
- Temporal boundary: in what time period/historical era does the hypothesis hold? Is there a time sensitivity?
- Spatial boundary: within what geographic/cultural/organizational scope does the hypothesis hold?
- Population boundary: to what kind of subjects does the hypothesis apply (populations, species, system types)?
- Conditional boundary: what preconditions are required for the hypothesis to hold (technical, institutional, environmental)?
- Exclusion conditions: explicitly list the situations where the hypothesis does not apply
- Output structured boundary condition list
Output Format
{
"hypothesis_id": "H1 (or hypothesis statement snippet)",
"boundary_conditions": {
"temporal": "Time period or duration constraints",
"spatial": "Geographic, cultural, or organizational scope",
"population": "Subject type, sample characteristics",
"conditional": ["Prerequisite condition 1", "Prerequisite condition 2"],
"exclusions"