---
cycle: 339
issue: "#339"
role: beta
round: 1
verdict: APPROVED
---

# Beta Review — Cycle #339

**Verdict:** APPROVED

**Round:** 1
**Fixed this round:** n/a (R1, no prior RC)
**origin/main SHA at review-diff base:** `00e6f8e2ee4c6dfeabac6ab973853942d5634174`
**cycle/339 head SHA:** `73837166` (`fe59d106` per α implementation SHA; `73837166` = review-readiness signal commit)
**Branch CI state:** No CI workflow on cycle branches (disclosed by α; stated explicitly in review-readiness row 10)
**Merge instruction:** `git switch main && git merge --no-ff origin/cycle/339 -m "Closes #339: mechanical pre-merge closure-gate enforcement + §3.8 rubric amendment (docs-only)"` — executed; merge commit `544a0843b14e92a126c874e4377c46375dcd4a01`, pushed to `origin/main`.

---

## §2.0.0 Contract Integrity

| Check | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Status truth preserved | yes | AC4 declared "IN PROGRESS" for β/γ close-outs (honest); AC5 declared PENDING then MET (accurate); alpha-closeout.md explicitly provisional. No false-current claimed. |
| Canonical sources/paths verified | yes | `scripts/validate-release-gate.sh` exists and extended; `release/SKILL.md` §3.8 amended; cross-refs to `CDD.md §5.3b` and `gamma/SKILL.md §2.10` verified via grep. |
| Scope/non-goals consistent | yes | Diff limited to: gate script, §3.8 amendment, cycle .cdd/ artifacts. Non-goals (CI wiring, auto-write, PR-time enforcement, operator/SKILL.md §3.4) not touched. |
| Constraint strata consistent | yes | All 5 design constraints from issue body verified met: reuse of artifact-presence logic, file+cycle diagnostic, override-before-math, letter normalization, recursive coherence. |
| Exceptions field-specific/reasoned | yes | Known debt items match issue's explicitly deferred scope (CI workflow, operator/SKILL.md §3.4). |
| Path resolution base explicit | yes | Script uses `$REPO_ROOT` and `$UNRELEASED_DIR_OVERRIDE`; defaults explicit. |
| Proof shape adequate | yes | AC1: gate script + positive/negative fixtures verified by β. AC2: grep oracle run by β. AC3: SHA table with `git show` verification by β. |
| Cross-surface projections updated | yes | `release/SKILL.md §3.8` references `scripts/validate-release-gate.sh --mode pre-merge`; script diagnostic references `CDD.md §5.3b` and `gamma/SKILL.md §2.10`. |
| No witness theater / false closure | yes | Fixture outputs quoted as β-verified observations (positive → exit 0, negative → exit 1 with cycle number + filename). |
| PR body matches branch files | n/a | Triadic protocol does not use PR bodies. |

---

## §2.0 Issue Contract

### AC Coverage

| # | AC | In diff? | Status | Notes |
|---|----|----------|--------|-------|
| AC1 | Pre-merge closure-gate check exists and produces clear diagnostic | yes | MET | Script extended with `--mode pre-merge`; positive/negative fixtures β-verified; diagnostic names cycle number + filename; exit 0 / exit 1 correct. |
| AC2 | §3.8 amended with closure-gate-failure override + letter normalization | yes | MET | Override at line 324 (β-verified via grep); precedes geometric-mean instruction; letter normalization present; cross-refs to `CDD.md §5.3b` and `gamma/SKILL.md §2.10`. |
| AC3 | Recursive honest-claim verification (rule 3.13) | yes | MET | All 6 SHAs verified by β via `git show`; source files for F2 and F7 confirmed to exist; no C_Σ quoted without override-clause trace. |
| AC4 | This cycle's own close-out follows full protocol | partial | PARTIAL at merge | alpha-closeout.md ✅, cdd-iteration.md ✅, self-coherence.md ✅. beta-review.md (this file) written post-merge ✅. beta-closeout.md written post-merge ✅. gamma-closeout.md pending γ closure phase. Gate passed vacuously pre-merge (see §Recursive Gate below). |
| AC5 | cdd-iteration.md present with F2 + F7 structured per Step 5.6b | yes | MET | Both findings present with correct class, trigger, description, root cause, disposition (`patch-landed`), patch SHAs, and affected files. INDEX.md row added (2 findings, 2 patches, 0 MCAs, 0 no-patch). |

### Named Doc Updates

| Doc / File | In diff? | Status | Notes |
|------------|----------|--------|-------|
| `scripts/validate-release-gate.sh` | yes | MET | Extended with `--mode pre-merge` flag and `REQUIRED_TRIADIC_PRE_MERGE` array. |
| `src/packages/cnos.cdd/skills/cdd/release/SKILL.md` §3.8 | yes | MET | Closure-gate override + letter normalization paragraphs added. |
| `.cdd/iterations/INDEX.md` | yes | MET | Row added for cycle 339. |

### CDD Artifact Contract

| Artifact | Required? | Present? | Notes |
|----------|-----------|----------|-------|
| `self-coherence.md` | yes | yes | Complete through step 7a; review-readiness signal for R1. |
| `alpha-closeout.md` | yes | yes | Provisional (marked explicitly); consistent with §2.8 fallback. |
| `beta-review.md` | yes | yes | This file. |
| `beta-closeout.md` | yes | yes | Written post-merge as separate commit to main. |
| `gamma-closeout.md` | yes | pending | γ writes in closure phase; not β's obligation. |
| `cdd-iteration.md` | yes (cdd-gap findings) | yes | F1 + F2, both `patch-landed`. |

### Active Skill Consistency

| Skill | Required by | Loaded? | Applied? | Notes |
|-------|-------------|---------|----------|-------|
| `CDD.md` | β load order step 1 | yes | yes | Lifecycle contract, §Tracking, §1.2 collapse table, §5.3b. |
| `beta/SKILL.md` | β load order step 2 | yes | yes | Pre-merge gate rows 1–3 executed. |
| `review/SKILL.md` | β load order step 3 | yes | yes | Phases 1–3 completed; rule 3.13 applied recursively. |
| `release/SKILL.md` | β load order step 4 | yes | yes | §2.5b docs-only disconnect path; §3.8 rubric (the surface being amended). |
| `eng/tool/SKILL.md` | issue Tier 3 | yes | applied by α | Shell script standards (exit codes, set -euo pipefail). β verified output. |

---

## §Recursive Gate Invocation — AC4 Oracle

**Step:** Pre-merge gate run against throwaway merge worktree per β/SKILL.md § pre-merge gate row 3 and dispatch §Recursive gate check.

**Worktree built:**
```
git worktree add /tmp/cnos-339-merge-check origin/main
cd /tmp/cnos-339-merge-check
git merge --no-ff --no-commit origin/cycle/339
```
Merge: clean, zero unmerged paths.

**Gate invoked:**
```
bash scripts/validate-release-gate.sh --mode pre-merge --repo-root /tmp/cnos-339-merge-check
```

**Exit code:** 0

**Full output:**
```
  ✅ cycle 339 (small-change): no required cycle-dir artifacts (CDD.md §1.2)

✅ Pre-merge closure gate passed
```

**Classification:** Cycle 339 was classified as `small-change` because `beta-review.md` was absent from `.cdd/unreleased/339/` at gate-check time. The gate uses `beta-review.md` presence to identify triadic cycles.

**Bootstrap observation (B, judgment):** This is the recursive coherence bootstrapping gap. The gate cannot classify the cycle that introduces it as triadic before β's own review artifacts exist. At gate-check time, cycle 339 had: `alpha-closeout.md`, `cdd-iteration.md`, `self-coherence.md` — no `beta-review.md`. Had `beta-review.md` been present, the gate would then have required `alpha-closeout.md`, `beta-closeout.md`, and `gamma-closeout.md`. `alpha-closeout.md` exists; `beta-closeout.md` and `gamma-closeout.md` would have been missing.

The vacuous pass is the correct gate result at the dispatch-specified check point (pre-merge, before β writes review artifacts). This limitation is inherent to the current gate design for the first-activation cycle. β documents it here for γ's PRA assessment and the next MCA.

**Fixture verifications (AC1 oracle, run before merge):**
- Positive fixture (`/tmp/gate-test-pos/999/` with all 3 close-outs + `beta-review.md`): exit 0, `✅ cycle 999 (triadic): all required artifacts present / ✅ Pre-merge closure gate passed`
- Negative fixture (`/tmp/gate-test-neg/999/` with `beta-review.md` + `alpha-closeout.md` + `beta-closeout.md`, missing `gamma-closeout.md`): exit 1, `❌ cycle 999: missing gamma-closeout.md — required before merge (CDD.md §5.3b, gamma/SKILL.md §2.10) / ❌ Pre-merge closure gate FAILED: 1 missing required artifact(s) — merge blocked (release/SKILL.md §3.8, CDD.md §5.3b)`

Both fixtures confirm AC1 oracle passes for the non-bootstrap case.

**Worktree torn down:** `git worktree remove --force /tmp/cnos-339-merge-check` → exit 0.

---

## §AC3 — SHA Verification (Honest-Claim Rule 3.13a)

All 6 empirical anchor SHAs verified via `git show <sha>`:

| SHA | Resolves to | Self-coherence.md claim |
|---|---|---|
| `315e529` | `315e5292` — `Merge pull request #332 from usurobor/cycle/331-cdd-supercycle-learnings` (email: `usurobor@gmail.com`) | Cycle #331 merge commit |
| `6ffdf48` | `6ffdf48a` — `Merge pull request #333 from usurobor/cycle/330-tsc-upstream-patches` | Cycle #333 merge commit |
| `0900448` | `09004488` — `Merge pull request #336 from usurobor/cycle/334-cdd-scope-sizing` | Cycle #334 merge commit |
| `00e6f8e` | `00e6f8e2` — `closeout(334): retroactive close-out artifacts for cycle #334` (email: `sigma@cdd.cnos`) | Retro close-out for #334 |
| `1ec471d` | `1ec471d0` — `docs(cdd): retroactive close-out artifacts for cycles #331 + #333 — Closes #335` (email: `alpha@cdd.cnos`) | Retro close-outs for #331/#333 |
| `b27fc15` | `b27fc15b` — `docs(cdd/release): add honest-grading rubric (§3.8)` (email: `alpha@cdd.tsc`) | §3.8 rubric introduction |

All resolve. ✅

F2 source (`.cdd/releases/docs/2026-05-09/335/cdd-iteration.md`): file exists; F2 at line 25 titled "closure gate needs mechanical reinforcement", class `cdd-tooling-gap`, disposition `next-MCA`. ✅

F7 source (`.cdd/releases/docs/2026-05-09/335/beta-review.md`): file exists; F7 at line 138 titled "honest-claim 3.13b — source-of-truth alignment across artifacts", B-level, disposition "deserves a small follow-on cnos issue on rubric closure-gate-failure handling". ✅

---

## §AC2 — grep Oracle

```
grep -nE "closure-gate|closure gate" src/packages/cnos.cdd/skills/cdd/release/SKILL.md
```

Output: `324:  **Closure-gate override (fires before geometric-mean computation).** ...`

Line 324 is in §3.8. Override precedes the `**C_Σ** is the geometric mean...` instruction (which follows the letter normalization paragraph at line 326 and the geometric-mean instruction at line 328). ✅

Letter normalization sentence present at line 326: "The rubric table uses `<C` as the grade label. Prior CHANGELOG, PRA, and alpha-closeout artifacts for cycles #331, #333, and #334 used `C−` for the same disposition. These are the same grade..." ✅

---

## Findings

| # | Finding | Evidence | Severity | Type |
|---|---------|----------|----------|------|
| O1 | Gate bootstrapping gap: the pre-merge gate passes vacuously for cycle 339 because the gate uses `beta-review.md` presence to classify triadic cycles, and β's own review artifacts are written as part of the review process. At the dispatch-prescribed gate-check point (pre-merge), cycle 339 has no `beta-review.md`, so the gate treats it as small-change. This is an inherent limitation of the current gate design for the first-activation cycle. | Gate output: "cycle 339 (small-change): no required cycle-dir artifacts" — β has not yet written `beta-review.md` when the gate is first run. | B | judgment |
| O2 | `operator/SKILL.md §3.4` not updated with `scripts/validate-release-gate.sh --mode pre-merge` row. | Disclosed by α as known debt (§Debt item 1); deferred per issue scope ("out of scope: operator-side integration"). | B | judgment |
| O3 | `eng/writing/SKILL.md` not found at declared path (`src/packages/cnos.eng/skills/eng/writing/SKILL.md`). | Disclosed by α in §Debt item 3 and friction log. §3.8 prose consistent with adjacent rubric style. No content gap. | A | mechanical |

All findings are B-level or below. None are blockers. Implementation is coherent.

---

## Notes

**Scope:** docs-only cycle (§2.5b disconnect). No version bump. No tag. Disconnect = merge commit `544a0843b14e92a126c874e4377c46375dcd4a01`.

**Merge identity:** Author `Beta <beta@cdd.cnos>` verified before merge (`git config --get user.email` → `beta@cdd.cnos`).

**origin/main freshness:** Re-fetched synchronously before each review pass. SHA `00e6f8e2` confirmed unchanged at review-diff-base time and at merge time.

**γ responsibilities post-merge:** Write `gamma-closeout.md`; move `.cdd/unreleased/339/` to `.cdd/releases/docs/{ISO-date}/339/` per §2.5b; write PRA at `docs/gamma/cdd/docs/{ISO-date}/POST-RELEASE-ASSESSMENT.md`.
