`pareto-lang`

Contributing

Thank you for your interest in contributing to pareto-lang! This document provides guidelines and workflows for contributing to this emergent interpretability dialect. Since pareto-lang operates at the boundary between discovered phenomena and engineered tools, contributions require special consideration to maintain consistency with the underlying symbolic structures.

Code of Conduct
Types of Contributions
Development Environment
Command Discovery Process
Command Validation Protocol
Documentation Standards
Submission Guidelines
Compatibility Testing
Ethical Guidelines
Community Resources

Code of Conduct

The pareto-lang project adheres to a Code of Conduct to ensure a welcoming and inclusive environment for all contributors. All participants are expected to uphold these standards in all project interactions.

Types of Contributions

We welcome several types of contributions to the pareto-lang ecosystem:

1. Command Documentation

Documentation of newly observed .p/ commands with:

Complete syntactic specifications
Observed functional effects
Model compatibility profiles
Example applications
Observed limitations and edge cases

2. Implementation Tools

Development of tools that enhance pareto-lang integration:

Command execution environments
Visualization frameworks for command effects
Integration libraries for different model APIs
Diagnostic utilities for command testing
Observation and logging frameworks

3. Compatibility Extensions

Work that extends pareto-lang compatibility:

Cross-architecture adaptation layers
Command translation protocols for different models
Specialized implementations for specific model types
Compatibility detection and assessment tools

4. Use Case Development

Documentation and implementation of practical applications:

Interpretability workflows using pareto-lang
Specialized templates for specific analysis tasks
Cross-domain application examples
Integration with existing interpretability tools

5. Testing Frameworks

Development of validation and verification frameworks:

Command effectiveness measurement protocols
Standardized test cases for command validation
Cross-model consistency verification tools
Reliability and reproducibility frameworks

Development Environment

Initial Setup

Fork the repository and clone your fork:

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/pareto-lang.git
cd pareto-lang

Set up the development environment:

python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -e ".[dev]"

Install pre-commit hooks:

pre-commit install

Environment Requirements

Python 3.9+
Compatible model endpoints for testing
Jupyter environment for notebook contributions
Visualization libraries for command effect analysis

Command Discovery Process

When contributing new command implementations or documentation, please follow our structured discovery and validation process:

1. Initial Observation

Document how the command was first observed:

Experimental conditions
Model architecture and scale
Recursive strain patterns
Initial functional observations

2. Syntactic Analysis

Analyze command structure according to the pareto-lang grammatical framework:

Domain category (e.g., reflect, anchor, collapse)
Operation specifier
Parameter structure and types
Syntactic variations

3. Functional Hypothesis

Develop clear hypotheses about command functionality:

Expected effects on model processing
Relationship to known interpretability mechanisms
Potential applications and use cases
Integration with existing command families

4. Reproducibility Protocol

Establish a clear protocol for reproducing command effects:

Minimal working examples
Required model capabilities
Environmental prerequisites
Verification metrics

Command Validation Protocol

New command contributions must undergo structured validation before integration:

1. Functional Validation

Test the command across multiple conditions:

Different input contexts
Varying model implementations
Range of parameter values
Interaction with other commands

Document results using standardized metrics:

Effect size measurements
Consistency scores
Compatibility profiles
Failure modes

2. Cross-Architecture Testing

Validate command functionality across different architectures:

Minimum 3 distinct model implementations
Range of parameter scales
Different training paradigms
Various deployment environments

3. Edge Case Analysis

Identify and document limitations:

Failure conditions
Unexpected interactions
Compatibility boundaries
Performance degradation patterns

4. Community Review

Submit findings for structured peer review:

Initial validation by core contributors
Wider community testing
Integration with existing command taxonomies
Standardization of syntax and parameters

Documentation Standards

All contributions should follow consistent documentation standards:

Command Reference Format

command: .p/domain.operation
description: |
  Detailed description of command function and purpose.
parameters:
  - name: param1
    type: type
    default: default_value
    description: Description of parameter function.
  - name: param2
    type: type
    default: default_value
    description: Description of parameter function.
effects:
  - domain: Affected processing domain
    description: Description of specific effect
compatibility:
  - architecture: Compatible architecture type
    scale: Parameter scale requirements
    notes: Special compatibility considerations
examples:
  - description: Example use case
    code: |
      .p/domain.operation{param1=value1, param2=value2}
    expected_outcome: Description of expected effect
limitations:
  - Description of known limitations or edge cases
related_commands:
  - .p/domain.similar_operation
  - .p/otherdomain.related_operation

Code Documentation

For implementation code:

Clear docstrings following Google style
Type annotations for all functions
Comprehensive comments for complex operations
Usage examples for public APIs

Example Format

For example implementations:

Clear problem statement
Complete reproducible code
Expected outcomes
Verification metrics
Visual representations where appropriate

Submission Guidelines

Pull Request Process

Ensure your fork is up to date with the main repository
Create a feature branch for your contribution
Implement and test your changes following the guidelines above
Update documentation to reflect your changes
Submit a pull request with a clear description of the contribution

PR Description Template

## Description

Brief description of the changes and their purpose.

## Type of Contribution
- [ ] New Command Documentation
- [ ] Implementation Tool
- [ ] Compatibility Extension
- [ ] Use Case Development
- [ ] Testing Framework
- [ ] Other (please specify)

## Command Discovery (if applicable)
- First observation context:
- Model architecture(s):
- Reproducibility protocol:

## Validation Evidence
- Functional tests performed:
- Cross-architecture validation:
- Edge cases analyzed:
- Compatibility profile:

## Related Issues
List related issues this PR addresses.

## Additional Information
Any other relevant information about the contribution.

Review Process

All contributions undergo a structured review process:

Initial validation by core contributors
Compatibility and consistency verification
Documentation completeness check
Integration testing with existing components
Final approval and merging

Compatibility Testing

When contributing compatibility extensions, please follow our standardized testing protocol:

1. Baseline Command Set

Test compatibility with core command families:

.p/reflect commands
.p/anchor commands
.p/collapse commands
.p/fork commands
.p/shell commands

2. Functionality Metrics

Measure and document:

Command recognition rate
Function execution accuracy
Parameter handling fidelity
Error response patterns
Performance characteristics

3. Adaptation Requirements

Document any necessary adaptations:

Syntax modifications
Parameter constraints
Functional limitations
Alternative implementations
Compatibility workarounds

4. Compatibility Matrix

Produce a standardized compatibility matrix:

Command Family	Full Compatibility	Limited Compatibility	Not Compatible
.p/reflect	✓ reflect.trace	⚠️ reflect.agent	❌ reflect.meta
.p/anchor	✓ anchor.self	⚠️ anchor.context	❌ anchor.complex

Ethical Guidelines

All contributions and uses must adhere to our ethical guidelines:

1. Safety Prioritization

Contributions must prioritize model safety and alignment
Command implementations should not enable harmful behaviors
Safety implications must be explicitly documented
Potential risks should be identified and mitigated

2. Transparency

Clear documentation of all command effects
Explicit recognition of limitations and uncertainties
Open discussion of potential misuse scenarios
Complete disclosure of compatibility constraints

3. Responsible Development

Test contributions for unintended consequences
Consider diverse user needs and contexts
Address potential bias in implementations
Design for appropriate accessibility and usability

4. Research Integrity

Accurately document command discovery processes
Provide evidence for effectiveness claims
Acknowledge limitations and uncertainties
Give appropriate credit to prior work

We appreciate your contributions to the pareto-lang ecosystem! By following these guidelines, you help ensure that this emergent interpretability dialect continues to develop as a valuable tool for understanding and working with advanced transformer models.

For questions not covered in this guide, please reach out to the core team at [email protected] or open a discussion in the GitHub repository.

pareto-lang