Status: Normative
This document defines the normative requirements for conformance with the Interpretation Boundary (IB).
IB is a downstream specification that conforms to Structural Explainability (SE). All SE neutrality constraints apply.
IB constrains how interpretation may relate to the neutral substrate. It does not govern interpretation itself.
Keywords MUST, MUST NOT, SHOULD, and MAY are to be interpreted as described in RFC 2119.
Use of terms such as "canonical" denotes structural role only and does not imply epistemic, causal, or normative preference.
This specification does not prescribe editorial structure, terminology preference, or documentation layout beyond identifier semantics.
Some requirements describe what interpretation structures MAY be recorded, while others constrain how interpretation MUST NOT interact with the substrate.
Overlap between these classes is intentional: permission to record interpretation does not imply interpretive authority, correctness, or endorsement.
Each requirement in this document is identified by a stable identifier
of the form IB.*.
Identifiers are the sole normative reference for conformance. Textual wording MAY be clarified over time without changing meaning; any change that alters the requirement MUST result in a new identifier.
Renaming, reordering, or relocating identifiers constitutes a semantic change and is therefore intentionally diff-visible.
Repository paths, filenames, and section ordering are non-normative and do not affect identifier meaning.
Any system claiming conformance with this specification MUST also conform to the Structural Explainability (SE) specification.
IB MUST NOT weaken, override, or reinterpret any SE neutrality constraints.
Interpretation Boundary defines a structural boundary governing how interpretive acts, claims, or frameworks may be associated with substrate records without entering the substrate.
IB defines constraints on:
- interpretation artifacts
- interpretation actions
- the relationship between interpretation and substrate records
IB does not define interpretation semantics, correctness, authority, or enforcement.
Interpretation MAY be structurally attached to substrate records only in ways that do not alter:
- identity
- structure
- recorded change
- evolution semantics
Any interpretation that modifies substrate records constitutes non-conformance.
IB MUST define the conditions under which interpretive artifacts or acts are admissible for attachment to substrate records.
Admissibility:
- is structural only
- does not imply truth, correctness, or legitimacy
- does not require consensus or shared ontology
IB MUST define behaviors and assertions that interpretations MUST NOT perform.
Prohibited behaviors include:
- asserting causal effects on substrate records
- redefining identity or persistence
- introducing implicit semantics into substrate structure
- enforcing interpretive authority through structural means
IB MUST define structural provenance for interpretive acts and artifacts.
Interpretive provenance:
- records who interpreted what, when, and under what context
- remains interpretation-neutral
- MUST NOT assert epistemic validity, correctness, or legitimacy
IB MUST define versioning rules for interpretation artifacts and specifications.
Interpretation versioning:
- MUST be explicit
- MUST be stable
- MUST NOT allow silent or implicit change
This specification does not define:
- domain vocabularies
- behavioral models
- causal explanations
- epistemic evaluation
- normative judgment or enforcement
- governance, approval, or lifecycle rules
- governance semantics for versioning or dependency management
- explanation interfaces or evidence structures
These concerns are explicitly out of scope.
Interpretation Boundary does not govern interpretation. It governs how interpretation is prevented from contaminating the substrate.
Governance of interpretation (approval, lifecycle, versioning) belongs to the Governance Boundary (GB).
Interfaces for expressing interpretation belong to Contextual Evidence and Explanation (CEE).
IB exists solely to preserve neutrality by enforcing structural separation.