OSP · Ontological Space

Software as a navigable space, governed by physics.

OSP treats a codebase as a conceptual space with physics-like rules and BFT-inspired witnessing — every module holds a position, every change obeys the field, every commit is attested before it lands.

x coupling y cohesion z instability s entropy w witness-depth
the model
The idea

Every module has coordinates.

OSP positions every module in a multi-dimensional coordinate system and constrains AI-agent commits through deterministic validity gates before mutation. Structure becomes measurable, drift becomes visible, and an agent can only move through the space along paths the field permits.

axis · x

Coupling

How strongly a module is bound to the rest of the space — its gravitational pull on neighbours.

axis · y

Cohesion

Internal unity: how tightly a module's own parts belong together as one body.

axis · z

Instability

Propensity to change — the velocity a module carries through the space over time.

scalar · s

Entropy

Accumulated disorder: the heat a module has taken on since its last clean state.

scalar · w

Witness-depth

BFT-inspired attestation: how many independent witnesses have signed off on the module's current state.

The constraint

Commits pass through validity gates.

No mutation reaches the space unattested. Each AI-agent commit is evaluated by deterministic gates — same input, same verdict, every time — and only lands when the field stays consistent and enough witnesses agree.

01 · POSITIONResolve the module's coordinates before and after the proposed change.
02 · FIELD CHECKReject moves that violate the physics — runaway coupling, entropy spikes, cohesion collapse.
03 · WITNESSRequire ≥ quorum independent witnesses to attest the new state (BFT quorum).
04 · COMMITOnly a gate-clean, witnessed mutation is written into the space.
agent propose Δ auth/session.ts position x 0.71 → 0.88 coupling ↑ field DENY coupling exceeds boundary (0.85) witnesses 2 / 3 required ✗ gate 02 · mutation rejected — space unchanged agent propose Δ auth/session.ts (revised) position x 0.71 → 0.74 entropy −0.06 field PASS witnesses 3 / 3 attested ✓ committed — witness-depth 3
Status

Early research.

Ontological Space is an open line of research into governable, self-describing software. The model, the coordinate metrics and the witnessing protocol are being formalised. If the idea resonates — or you want to break it — reach out.