RTT Mastery Scenario Gauntlet — Internet Archive

student_materials/mastery_scenario_gauntlet.md#

Overview#

This gauntlet tests your ability to:

• analyze snapshot timelines
• detect drift
• identify continuity kernels
• evaluate substrate stability
• interpret lineage graphs
• choose the most reliable snapshot

You will complete five scenarios, each requiring full use of the RTT operator chain.

All scenarios are synthetic and do not correspond to real Internet Archive pages.

Scenario 1 — Government Records Portal#

Target URL:
https://archive.org/details/gov-records-portal

Snapshot Timeline:
2012, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2023

Observed Structure:

• 2012 → 2013: identical
• 2013 → 2016: template update
• 2016 → 2019: navigation restructure
• 2019 → 2023: minor CSS shift

Substrate: HTML
Collection: govdocs

Tasks#

1. Identify drift levels for each transition.
2. Identify the continuity kernel.
3. Determine whether any continuity breaks exist.
4. Evaluate substrate stability.
5. Choose the most reliable snapshot and justify your answer.

Scenario 2 — Vintage Software Index#

Target URL:
https://archive.org/details/vsoft-index

Snapshot Timeline:
2011, 2014, 2018, 2022

Observed Structure:

• 2011 → 2014: no change
• 2014 → 2018: minor layout update
• 2018 → 2022: no change

Substrate: HTML
Collection: vintagesoftware

Tasks#

1. Identify drift levels.
2. Identify the continuity kernel.
3. Evaluate stability and drift risk.
4. Explain why vintage software collections tend to be stable.
5. Choose the most reliable snapshot.

Scenario 3 — Academic Journal Archive#

Target URL:
https://archive.org/details/journal-hub

Snapshot Timeline:
2012, 2015, 2018, 2021, 2024

Observed Structure:

• 2012 → 2015: template refresh
• 2015 → 2018: navigation restructure
• 2018 → 2021: CMS migration
• 2021 → 2024: minor CSS update

Substrate: Mixed (HTML + PDF)
Collection: journals

Tasks#

1. Identify drift levels for each transition.
2. Identify the regime shift.
3. Identify the continuity kernel.
4. Explain how mixed substrates affect stability.
5. Choose the most reliable snapshot and justify your answer.

Scenario 4 — Local News Archive#

Target URL:
https://archive.org/details/localnews-chronicle

Snapshot Timeline:
2010, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2020, 2024

Observed Structure:

• 2010 → 2011: minor CSS change
• 2011 → 2013: moderate layout shift
• 2013 → 2016: full redesign
• 2016 → 2017: no change
• 2017 → 2020: CMS migration
• 2020 → 2024: minor CSS update

Substrate: HTML
Collection: news

Tasks#

1. Identify drift levels for each transition.
2. Identify continuity breaks.
3. Identify the continuity kernel (if any).
4. Explain why news sites tend to have high drift.
5. Choose the most reliable snapshot and justify your answer.

Scenario 5 — Museum Exhibit Archive#

Target URL:
https://archive.org/details/museum-exhibit-collection

Snapshot Timeline:
2013, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2023

Observed Structure:

• 2013 → 2014: no change
• 2014 → 2016: minor layout update
• 2016 → 2019: mixed substrate introduced (HTML + image)
• 2019 → 2023: navigation restructure

Substrate: Mixed
Collection: cultural

Tasks#

1. Identify drift levels.
2. Identify the continuity kernel.
3. Explain how mixed substrates affect drift risk.
4. Identify any regime shifts.
5. Choose the most reliable snapshot and justify your answer.

Mastery Criteria#

To demonstrate mastery, your answers must:

• correctly identify drift levels
• correctly identify continuity kernels
• correctly detect regime shifts
• correctly evaluate substrate stability
• correctly identify continuity breaks
• justify snapshot selection using RTT logic
• avoid content‑based reasoning

Teacher Rubric#

Mastery: 45–50
Proficiency: 38–44
Developing: 30–37
Needs Support: ≤29