DOI Canon Interface
Canon is not prestige. It is earned survivability.
Purpose of the Canon Interface#
The canon interface exists to:
- Prevent fragile ideas from hardening into authority.
- Preserve validated knowledge across generations.
- Enable citation without freezing inquiry.
- Separate persistence from popularity.
Canonization is a structural decision, not a reputational one.
What Canon Means in This Model#
Canon refers to artifacts that:
- Have survived cross‑regime stress testing.
- Remain coherent under scale and translation.
- Explicitly document failure modes.
- Preserve reversibility and legibility.
- Continue to function without enforcement.
Canon does not imply completeness or finality.
DOI as Interface, Not Authority#
A DOI is used here as an interface layer, not a declaration of truth.
The DOI:
- Anchors a stable reference point.
- Enables long‑term citation.
- Preserves lineage and version history.
- Signals readiness for external use.
The DOI does not confer correctness. It confers traceability.
Canon Admission Criteria#
An artifact may be considered for canon when it:
- Demonstrates invariant alignment.
- Survives RTT evaluation.
- Documents known failure modes.
- Remains minimally sufficient.
- Has been human‑curated after AI‑assisted review.
Failure to meet any criterion delays canonization.
Human Curation Requirement#
Canon decisions require human judgment.
Humans are responsible for:
- Interpreting context.
- Assessing regime translation.
- Evaluating ethical implications.
- Deciding when not to canonize.
AI may assist, but cannot authorize canon.
Canon Is Not Permanent#
Canon artifacts remain subject to:
- Re‑evaluation.
- Contextual adaptation.
- Supersession by better structures.
- Explicit deprecation when necessary.
Persistence is conditional on continued coherence.
Failure Mode#
Canon interfaces fail when:
- Prestige replaces evaluation.
- Popularity substitutes for survivability.
- Authority freezes inquiry.
- Revision becomes taboo.
At that point, canon becomes dogma.
The DOI Canon Interface exists to protect the future from premature certainty.
What enters canon should do so quietly —
and remain useful long after its creators are gone.