Pattern Mining

Pattern Mining

Decide whether repeated code demonstrates a reusable rule or only a plausible hypothesis. Similar names and syntax are not enough; the abstraction must survive examples it was not designed around.

Constraints

• To prevent lineage copies from faking recurrence, use independently implemented exemplars with repository anchors.
• Because the candidate must generalize, form it without seeing the holdout and back-apply every holdout-driven refinement.
• To keep weak evidence from becoming architecture, route hypotheses to no-action; only a fully proven promotion may reach operationalize.

Workflow

1. State the candidate pattern and collect independently implemented exemplars with repository anchors. Use research when coverage is unclear.
2. From the exemplars, separate required invariants, legitimate variation points, and incidental similarity.
3. Require at least three distinct exemplars before promotion is possible. Form the candidate abstraction without using the holdout.
4. Test it against every exemplar, then a separate holdout. Back-apply the refined abstraction to the original exemplars so the holdout fix cannot silently break them.
5. Emit outcome: promote only when the exemplar floor, holdout, and back-application all pass. Route that evidence to operationalize, which decides whether the eventual shape is a skill, gate, library, template, or no action.
6. Otherwise emit outcome: hypothesis with route: no-action. Keep the evidence bounded and name what additional observation would retest it.

Output Specification

• Artifact directory: .agents/patterns/<run-id>/
• Filename convention: pattern-mining.json
• Format: pattern-mining.v1 JSON containing the outcome, distinct exemplars, invariants, variations, incidental details, holdout result, back-application result, and route.
• Validation command: skills/pattern-mining/scripts/validate-output.sh <pattern-mining.json>
• Downstream handoff: pass a validated promote artifact to operationalize; retain a validated hypothesis artifact as bounded evidence with route: no-action.

Promotion requires at least three distinct exemplars, one separate passing holdout, successful back-application, and at least one invariant. Any weaker packet remains a hypothesis and cannot route to reusable packaging.

The validator is the machine boundary:

skills/pattern-mining/scripts/validate-output.sh <pattern.json>

This skill owns evidence for the pattern. It never creates the reusable artifact itself and never promotes a failed or untested holdout.

Executable behavior: references/pattern-mining.feature.

Quality

• Exemplars are independent and repository-anchored; copied implementations do not inflate the evidence floor.
• Invariants, legitimate variations, and incidental similarities stay distinct through holdout testing and back-application.
• The named validator passes before a promotion reaches operationalize or a hypothesis is retained as no-action evidence.

Do not

• Count copies from one implementation lineage as independent exemplars.
• Hide variation by calling it incidental.
• Route a hypothesis directly to a skill, rule, gate, or library.