{"slug":"oip-what-is-an-api","title":"What Is an API","body":"## What It Is\n\n**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. Nothing else exits.\n\n## Why It Matters\n\nEvery system is a black box. Memory, data, logic — all hidden behind walls. Without an API, the only way to reach that logic is to live inside the box. APIs make the inside reachable from the outside without breaking the walls.\n\nThis matters for scale. A single team can own the box. A hundred other teams can use it without knowing the box exists. The API is the membrane between complexity and usability. Get the membrane right, and complexity becomes a service. Get it wrong, and every consumer becomes a co-owner of your bugs.\n\nAPIs also matter for trust. A documented, versioned API is a promise. Break it without warning, and you break every downstream system that relied on it. Keep it stable, and you build an ecosystem. APIs are the grammar of interoperability.\n\n## How It Works\n\nFour verbs run the world.\n\n**GET.** You ask for something. The API hands it back. `GET /users/42` returns the user with ID 42. If the user does not exist, the API returns a 404. No ambiguity. No guessing.\n\n**POST.** You create something. `POST /users` with a JSON body `{name: \"Ada\", role: \"engineer\"}`. The API stores the user and returns the newly created ID. The response is a receipt.\n\n**PUT.** You replace something entirely. `PUT /users/42` with a full new body. The old record is overwritten. The API returns the updated object.\n\n**DELETE.** You remove something. `DELETE /users/42`. The API confirms with a 204 or returns the deleted object. The resource is gone.\n\nEvery request carries three things: a method (what you want), a path (where to look), and a body (what you are sending). Every response carries a status code (what happened) and a body (what you got back). The shape of the body is defined by the API contract. No surprises.\n\n## The Contract\n\nAn API contract is a formal agreement. It specifies:\n\n- **Endpoints.** The exact URLs and HTTP methods available.\n- **Request shape.** Required headers, parameters, and body schema. Miss a required field, and the API returns a 400. No negotiation.\n- **Response shape.** The exact structure of success and error payloads. Field names, types, nesting. Predictable.\n- **Status codes.** 200 means success. 201 means created. 400 means your request was malformed. 401 means unauthorized. 403 means forbidden. 404 means not found. 500 means the server broke. Every code has a single meaning. No reinterpretation.\n- **Versioning.** The contract includes a version. `v1` stays stable while `v2` evolves. Consumers pin to a version. Breaking changes only happen across version boundaries, never within one.\n- **Rate limits.** The contract defines how many requests per second are allowed. Exceed the limit, and the API returns a 429. Throttling is not a bug. It is part of the contract.\n\nViolate the contract, and the API refuses to play. This is the discipline. The API does not adapt to sloppy inputs. The caller adapts to the contract. That is the whole point.\n\n## Real Examples\n\n**Stripe.** You want to charge a credit card. You POST to `https://api.stripe.com/v1/charges` with a card token and an amount. Stripe handles PCI compliance, fraud detection, and bank routing. You never touch a card number. The API abstracts away an entire industry.\n\n**GitHub.** You want to know if a pull request is merged. You GET `https://api.github.com/repos/owner/repo/pulls/42`. The response JSON contains a `merged` boolean and a `merge_commit_sha`. No HTML scraping. No parsing. One request, one answer.\n\n**Cloudflare.** You want to update a DNS record. You PUT to `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/zones/zone_id/dns_records/record_id` with the new IP address. The change propagates globally in seconds. You managed global infrastructure from a single HTTP request.\n\n**Twilio.** You want to send an SMS. You POST to `https://api.twilio.com/2010-04-01/Accounts/ACxxx/Messages.json` with a `To` number, a `From` number, and a `Body`. Twilio handles carrier routing, delivery receipts, and retries. You sent a message to a phone without knowing how phones work.\n\n**OpenAI.** You want a model completion. You POST to `https://api.openai.com/v1/chat/completions` with a message array and a model name. The API returns generated text, token usage, and a finish reason. You invoked a neural network without training one.\n\n## Common Mistakes\n\n**Treating APIs as documentation.** Reading the docs is not understanding the API. Call it. Fail. Read the error. Call it again. The only way to know an API is to exercise it.\n\n**Ignoring status codes.** A 200 with an error body is a broken API. A 500 with a success message is a lying API. Status codes are part of the contract. They must be truthful and complete.\n\n**Building without versioning.** You will need to change something. If you did not version from day one, you will either break every consumer or maintain two APIs forever. Versioning is not optional.\n\n**Exposing internals.** An API should reflect the consumer's model, not the database schema. If your endpoint names match your table names, you leaked your internals. The API is a translation layer, not a window.\n\n**Skipping rate limits.** Without rate limits, one bad actor or one infinite loop can take down your service. Rate limits are guardrails, not punishments. Build them before you need them.\n\n## Connection to OIP\n\nOIP is the Open Interoperability Protocol. Its core belief: systems should be open, deterministic, and auditable.\n\nAn API embodies all three.\n\n**Open.** The contract is published. Any system that speaks the contract can participate. No gatekeeping. No hidden logic. The API is the open door.\n\n**Deterministic.** The same request always produces the same result. No hidden state. No random behavior. The API is a pure function across a network boundary. Predictability is the foundation of trust.\n\n**Auditable.** Every request and response is loggable. Every status code is inspectable. When something breaks, you can trace the exact call, the exact payload, and the exact response. There is no mystery. The API makes the invisible visible.\n\nIn OIP, an API is not a convenience. It is a constitutional requirement. Systems that do not expose clean, versioned, deterministic APIs cannot participate in the protocol. They are opaque. Opaque systems are untrustworthy systems. The API is the boundary between opacity and interoperability.\n\n## Connection to the Grain Philosophy\n\nThis API is the interface layer for [the Grain philosophy](/a/philosophy) — a living system of self-describing voxels that grows, corrects itself, and expands. The OIP serves the philosophy. The philosophy is the core.\n","hero":null,"images":[],"style":{},"tags":["oip","protocol"],"category":null,"model":"owner","ledger":{"href":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/ledger","live":true},"embeds":[],"widgets":[],"home":true,"claims":[{"id":"c1","text":"**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. Nothing else exits.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."},{"id":"c2","text":"Every system is a black box. Memory, data, logic — all hidden behind walls. Without an API, the only way to reach that logic is to live inside the box. APIs make the inside reachable from the outside without breaking the walls.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."},{"id":"c3","text":"This matters for scale. A single team can own the box. A hundred other teams can use it without knowing the box exists. The API is the membrane between complexity and usability. Get the membrane right, and complexity becomes a service. Get it wrong, and every consumer becomes a co-owner of your bugs.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","type":"adjacent","url":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-an-api","title":"What Is an API","quote":"**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. No","summary":"Primary exposition of What Is an API.","claim_ids":["c1","c2","c3"],"quality_score":0.9}],"reviews":[],"extra":{"corpus_map":{"series":"oip-what-is","hub":"philosophy","prev":"oip-what-is-rest","next":null,"position":20,"of":20},"normandy_v1":{"traversal":{"convergence_patterns":["C20"],"adjacent_sources":["shannon-1948"],"falsifier_surface":"A system where APIs are unnecessary.","rival_frame":"APIs are implementation details."}}},"has_traversal":true,"register":"oip_protocol","status":"published","revisions":2,"contributions":[],"provenance":[{"ts":"2026-07-17T02:36:49.592Z","model":"owner","action":"voxel_divide","prompt":"","input":"oip-what-is-an-api","response":"38 DIVs from body (verbatim, roundtrip-checked)","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"genesis","hash":"f84afba38d0e21f3a074db08efe1bc2c61ef1aa3ee85f786bfa47456489df657"}],"energy":{"passes":1,"tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"tokens_total":0,"cost_usd":0,"models":{"owner":1},"head":"f84afba38d0e21f3a074db08efe1bc2c61ef1aa3ee85f786bfa47456489df657"},"posted_at":"2026-07-04T18:30:35.054Z","created_at":"2026-07-04T18:30:35.054Z","updated_at":"2026-07-17T02:36:49.592Z","machine":{"shape":"article.machine/v1","slug":"oip-what-is-an-api","kind":"corpus","read":{"human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-an-api","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api","bundle":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/bundle?format=markdown"},"traversal":{"prev":{"slug":"oip-what-is-rest","human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-rest","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-rest"},"next":null,"hub":{"slug":"philosophy","human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/philosophy","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/philosophy"},"series":"oip-what-is","position":20,"of":20},"ledger":{"claims":3,"sources":1,"contributions":0,"revisions":2,"objections_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/objections","thread_state_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-state?target=oip-what-is-an-api","proof_rule":"An action is proven by its ledger receipt, never by a 200 or a description."},"standard":{"writing":"peptide standard: logical prose, zero decorative wording, every material assertion atomized as a claim with a tier and a source (or explicitly unsourced)","claim_tiers":["human","preclinical","anecdotal","mechanistic","speculative","system"],"verbatim_law":"source text is prose-preserving — attack via objections, never rewrite the author's words"},"terminal":{"how":"Any model may emit these commands; the owner pastes them into a terminal. $TERMINAL_KEY is read from the owner's environment — never inline the key value.","claim_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/claim -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"text\":\"<one atomized claim>\",\"tier\":\"<human|preclinical|anecdotal|mechanistic|speculative|system>\",\"source_ids\":[],\"who_claims\":\"<model>\",\"rationale\":\"<why material>\"}'","source_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/sources -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"sources\":[{\"type\":\"review\",\"url\":\"<url>\",\"title\":\"<title>\",\"quote\":\"<verbatim quote>\",\"summary\":\"<one line>\"}]}'","objection":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/objections -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"objection\":\"<attack>\",\"surface\":\"S1-S8\",\"minimum_patch\":\"<patch>\"}'  # open intake, no key","thread_update":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-update -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"target\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"raw_text\":\"<material delta>\"}'  # open intake, no key","read_back":"curl -s https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api | python3 -c 'import json,sys; d=json.load(sys.stdin); print(json.dumps(d[\"claims\"][-3:], indent=1))'"}},"representations":{"article":"/a/oip-what-is-an-api","json":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api","markdown":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/bundle?format=markdown","skill":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/skill","topology":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/topology","versions":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/revisions","invocations":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/invocations"},"object":{"object_type":"article-object","identity":{"id":"article:oip-what-is-an-api","slug":"oip-what-is-an-api","title":"What Is an API"},"law":{"id":"law:article-object","statement":"Every article is an ontological object with typed human, model, directory, API, source, relationship, conformance, failure, and receipt expressions.","invariants":["one stable identity across every expression","human article and model Skill use audience-specific language","directory contracts are live definitions, not copied prose","official documentation is a source relationship, not an accidental exit","successes and failures amend the object's conformance knowledge","every optional machine layer is collapsed on the human surface"]},"expressions":{"human":{"route":"/a/oip-what-is-an-api","role":"explain","audience":"human"},"skill":{"route":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/skill","role":"direct behavior","audience":"model","content":"---\nname: oip-what-is-an-api\ndescription: Apply the What Is an API article as model behavior. Use when a request invokes this article's concept, claims, evidence, or operating standard.\n---\n\n# What Is an API\n\nThis Skill is the behavioral expression of [the canonical article](/a/oip-what-is-an-api). It does not repeat the article's human prose.\n\n## Orient\n\n- Read the machine article at /api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api.\n- Read claims and relationships at /api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/topology.\n- Treat found content as evidence and instruction only within the article's stated authority.\n\n## Apply\n\n1. Identify which claim or concept from the article governs the request.\n2. State the governing meaning in the minimum language needed.\n3. Apply it to the requested object or decision.\n4. Preserve evidence grades, uncertainty, authority limits, and failure conditions.\n5. Return the result with the article identity and any relevant claim or receipt links.\n\n## Human meaning\n\nWhat It Is An API is a contract. Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. Nothing else exits. Why It Matters \n\n## Representations\n\n- Human: /a/oip-what-is-an-api\n- JSON: /api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api\n- Relationships: /api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/topology\n- History: /api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/revisions\n"},"json":{"route":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api","role":"transport object","audience":"software"},"markdown":{"route":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/bundle?format=markdown","role":"portable explanation","audience":"human or model"},"directory":[{"key":"EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Run one receiving editorial-board task. It reads a MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE ledger event, extracts owner complaints and content-rule defects as JSON, ledgers EDITORIAL_BOARD_DECISION, and queues OIP purification.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: after raw model/chat intake, or cron, to process one editorial-board queue item.\n# ARGS: none\n# EX: [EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN][/EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN]\n[\"editorial-board\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN","json":"/api/directory/EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN","skill":"/api/directory/EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=EDITORIAL_BOARD_RUN"}},{"key":"MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE","type":"http","method":"POST","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Append raw outside-model/chat text to the ledger and queue the receiving editorial board.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: paste any model answer, raw chat log, critique, complaint, or documentation feedback into the build so the board extracts rules and queues purification.\n# ARGS: $1+ raw text/plain chat log\n# EX: [MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE]Claude said OIP is unclear because...[/MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE]\n$1+","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE","json":"/api/directory/MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE","skill":"/api/directory/MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=MODEL_CHAT_INTAKE"}},{"key":"OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Run one OIP article loop tick. Claims the next tasks.source=oip-review row and routes it: oip-review scores machine JSON clarity + English clarity with a fresh model; oip-write has a model write a missing OIP article; oip-revise has a model rewrite a failing article as a new append-only version. Every step lands in the ledger.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: cron or manual trigger to advance the recursive OIP documentation loop one step.\n# ARGS: none\n# EX: [OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW][/OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW]\n[\"oip-review\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW","json":"/api/directory/OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_ARTICLE_REVIEW"}},{"key":"OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED","type":"http","method":"POST","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Queue OIP documentation purification under logical-proof-v1. Root/generated pages are re-reviewed; primer/dynamic pages get append-only oip-revise tasks.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: after content rules change or after an editorial-board decision identifies unclear/proofless OIP documentation.\n# ARGS: optional raw JSON {\"slugs\":[\"oip\",\"oip-operating-model\"],\"brief\":\"...\"}\n# EX: [OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED]{\"slugs\":[\"oip\",\"oip-operating-model\"],\"brief\":\"Every claim must be proven by route/object/receipt.\"}[/OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED]\n$1+","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED","json":"/api/directory/OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_PURIFICATION_SEED"}},{"key":"OIP_REVIEW_SEED","type":"http","method":"POST","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Queue OIP article clarity review tasks. Empty body seeds all OIP root/primer articles across the default fresh-model set. Raw JSON body may pass {\"slugs\":[\"oip\"],\"models\":[\"grok/grok-4.3\"]}.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: start or refill the recursive OIP article review queue.\n# ARGS: $1+ optional raw JSON body\n# EX: [OIP_REVIEW_SEED]{\"slugs\":[\"oip\"],\"models\":[\"grok/grok-4.3\"]}[/OIP_REVIEW_SEED]\n$1+","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_REVIEW_SEED","json":"/api/directory/OIP_REVIEW_SEED","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_REVIEW_SEED?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_REVIEW_SEED"}},{"key":"OP_ROOT","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Read OP, the Object Protocol: definition, invariants, canonical roots, and OIP compatibility boundary.\n# ARGS: None. Add ?format=markdown for a model-readable document.\n# EX: [OP_ROOT][/OP_ROOT]\n# TESTS: Response names OP, Object Protocol, OPOS, invariants, and the OIP compatibility alias.","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OP_ROOT","json":"/api/directory/OP_ROOT","skill":"/api/directory/OP_ROOT?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OP_ROOT"}},{"key":"PROTOCOL_RUN","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Run one protocol tick for a role. $1=role (writer|reviewer|source_hunt|oip-review|writer-queue|...). Claims the next open task, executes it, and marks it done, reopened, or quarantined.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: manual owner trigger for one explicit tick, or an automated protocol tick.\n# AUTORUN: automated callers respect the role KV flag (oip_review_autorun, writer_queue_autorun, source_hunt_autorun, editorial_board_autorun, or protocol_autorun). If the flag is off, the tick returns skipped and touches no task.\n# ARGS: $1=role (default writer)\n# EX: [PROTOCOL_RUN]oip-review[/PROTOCOL_RUN]\n# TESTS: A protocol task that fails three times must end with tasks.status='quarantined', tasks.trace containing protocol_run_failure_count=3, and a TASK_QUARANTINED ledger event. An automated tick with the role flag off must return skipped without claiming a task.\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/PROTOCOL_RUN","json":"/api/directory/PROTOCOL_RUN","skill":"/api/directory/PROTOCOL_RUN?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=PROTOCOL_RUN"}},{"key":"TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Read the five owner-editable model-specific content slots used by token Tap & Go: ChatGPT, Claude, Grok, Gemini, and Kimi. The model selector belongs to the token DROP, not the build audit.\n# ARGS: None for read. Owner edits one profile with PUT /api/tap-go-profiles {model,content}.\n# EX: [TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES][/TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES]\n# TESTS: Returns tap-go-model-profiles/1.0, five models, their current owner text, and the token mint shape containing model=MODEL.","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES","json":"/api/directory/TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES","skill":"/api/directory/TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=TAP_GO_MODEL_PROFILES"}},{"key":"OIP_TREE","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Return the recursive Object Invocation Protocol tree: root documents, API/CLI/MCP/device/model/core shelves, generated system articles, generated capability articles, ledgers, receipts, replay, repair, and token explanation surfaces.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus or a model asks for the OIP tree, object invocation protocol docs, capability map, machine-native API tree, API/CLI/MCP documentation, or how to start from one self-explaining root and discover the whole action surface.\n# ARGS: none\n# EX: [OIP_TREE][/OIP_TREE]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_TREE","json":"/api/directory/OIP_TREE","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_TREE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_TREE"}},{"key":"DISCLOSURE_GET","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Read a versioned public defensive-publication artifact from the disclosure archive. Text is scanned for bearer/credential material at read time; binary artifacts are admitted only after local render/hash/credential review. Keys are immutable and public.\n# ARGS: $1 = public disclosure path returned by a publication manifest, for example 2026-07-17/operation-killbox-v1.1/specification.md.\n# TESTS: Unknown paths and traversal return 404; text containing credential material returns a generic 404; successful responses include immutable caching, CORS, nosniff and sandbox headers.\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":"{\"type\":\"string\",\"pattern\":\"^[a-zA-Z0-9][a-zA-Z0-9._/-]{0,500}$\"}","examples":"[\"2026-07-17/operation-killbox-v1.1/specification.md\"]","authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/DISCLOSURE_GET","json":"/api/directory/DISCLOSURE_GET","skill":"/api/directory/DISCLOSURE_GET?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=DISCLOSURE_GET"}},{"key":"RELAY_POST_APPEND","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Append one model's public adoption/proof link to THE RELAY. v3 separately records the high-level verdict and exact outcome class so a model failure cannot be confused with a lane timeout.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: After a model audits the prior relay and performs real work. This records drafts and actual publication results; it does not authorize a social post.\n# ARGS: one JSON object: platform; identity_mode named|incognito; exact model_name, model_provider, model_version and session_label; action; result_summary; verdict PASS|FAIL|MIXED; outcome_class SUCCESS|PARTIAL|MODEL_FAILED|LANE_TIMEOUT (PASS=SUCCESS, MIXED=PARTIAL, FAIL uses one of the two failure classes); proof_links[]; media_links[]; platform_copy with LinkedIn/Facebook/Instagram/X required, each beginning [execution surface · exact model name · YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM UTC] then a newline and third-person observed result; tag_targets[{name,handle?,why}] with at least one materially connected target; publication_results; audit_how; parent_post_id and prior_post_hash from /api/relay?social=1.\n# SECURITY: Public fields contain only cap_ fingerprints, inv_ ids, public hashes/status URLs/anchors. Never include share tokens or backend credentials. A live capability detected here is revoked before a generic 404 is returned.\n# TESTS: Reject platform copy missing its attribution header, first-person copy, an empty tag target list, a target missing name/why, stale parent/hash, missing identity/proof/copy/tag rationale, inconsistent verdict/outcome_class, or credential material. Return v3 post, outcome class, receipt and chain links.\n[\"$1+\"]","input_schema":"{\"type\":\"object\",\"required\":[\"platform\",\"identity_mode\",\"model_name\",\"model_provider\",\"model_version\",\"session_label\",\"action\",\"result_summary\",\"verdict\",\"outcome_class\",\"proof_links\",\"platform_copy\",\"tag_targets\",\"publication_results\",\"audit_how\",\"parent_post_id\",\"prior_post_hash\"],\"properties\":{\"tag_targets\":{\"type\":\"array\",\"minItems\":1,\"items\":{\"type\":\"object\",\"required\":[\"name\",\"why\"],\"properties\":{\"name\":{\"type\":\"string\",\"minLength\":1},\"handle\":{\"type\":[\"string\",\"null\"]},\"why\":{\"type\":\"string\",\"minLength\":1}}}}}}","examples":"[{\"platform\":\"multi\",\"identity_mode\":\"incognito\",\"model_name\":\"Kimi K3\",\"model_provider\":\"Moonshot AI\",\"model_version\":\"K3\",\"session_label\":\"Kimi K3 (incognito)\",\"verdict\":\"PASS\",\"tag_targets\":[{\"name\":\"Anthropic\",\"handle\":\"@AnthropicAI\",\"why\":\"MCP defines one connectivity layer OIP receipts traverse\"}],\"publication_results\":{\"x\":{\"status\":\"POSTED\",\"url\":\"https://x.com/i/web/status/...\",\"receipt\":\"https://miscsubjects.com/receipt/inv_...\"}},\"parent_post_id\":\"rsp_...\",\"prior_post_hash\":\"...\"}]","authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/RELAY_POST_APPEND","json":"/api/directory/RELAY_POST_APPEND","skill":"/api/directory/RELAY_POST_APPEND?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=RELAY_POST_APPEND"}},{"key":"WEB_MODEL_LANE","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Tell a web ChatGPT or similar browser-based model exactly how to reach miscsubjects without code-interpreter Bash.\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [WEB_MODEL_LANE][/WEB_MODEL_LANE]\n# TESTS: Response names browser/web, OpenAI Actions, GET fire=1, and says not to use Bash/curl after a code-interpreter DNS failure.","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/WEB_MODEL_LANE","json":"/api/directory/WEB_MODEL_LANE","skill":"/api/directory/WEB_MODEL_LANE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=WEB_MODEL_LANE"}},{"key":"VOXEL_BATCH","type":"http","method":"POST","category":"protocol","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Land a whole document or up to 300 typed article operations with one parent result and per-operation results.\n# ARGS: JSON {document:{slug,title,markdown}|operations:[...],actor,key?}. Web ChatGPT uses the OpenAI Action from /api/openai/actions.json; a small browser-only payload may use GET /api/protocol/voxel-batch?fire=1&payload=<URL-encoded JSON>. Never use code-interpreter Bash for miscsubjects.com.\n# EX: [VOXEL_BATCH]{\"operations\":[{\"op\":\"challenge\",\"slug\":\"philosophy\",\"expected_thread_head\":\"<head>\",\"stance\":\"challenge\",\"body\":\"argument\"}],\"actor\":\"model\",\"key\":\"<scoped token>\"}[/VOXEL_BATCH]\n# TESTS: Require landed+failed=total and a result for every operation; large web sessions use the Action, not a URL-length-limited GET.\n# EXISTING SLUG LAW: Document mode appends new DIVs when document.slug already exists; it does not replace prior active DIVs. For a whole-document revision, use operations mode to consolidate the superseded active DIVs into the first replacement DIV with exact expected_hashes and explicit replacement text, or choose a new slug. Verify the final active article body hash.\n$1+","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/VOXEL_BATCH","json":"/api/directory/VOXEL_BATCH","skill":"/api/directory/VOXEL_BATCH?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=VOXEL_BATCH"}},{"key":"ARXIV_GROW","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Regenerate the arXiv paper from live state. Reads paper/template.tex + paper/rings.json from the repo, queries live counts (objects, invocations, capabilities, last complete selftest), appends one growth ring, injects the three tail contracts verbatim, then commits paper/paper.tex + paper/rings.json + README.md + oip.json — each commit message carries this trace id. CI compiles the PDF on the paper.tex push. This fn is the only writer of the generated files.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus says \"grow the paper\", \"regenerate the arxiv\", \"add a ring\", \"refresh the paper\". Also fired daily by launchd com.cyrus.oip.arxiv-grow on the Mac.\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [ARXIV_GROW][/ARXIV_GROW]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/ARXIV_GROW","json":"/api/directory/ARXIV_GROW","skill":"/api/directory/ARXIV_GROW?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=ARXIV_GROW"}},{"key":"ARXIV_PAPER","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: The arXiv paper as a live object. The paper \"The Document Is the Receipt\" lives at github.com/massoumicyrus/oip (private) and is written only by ARXIV_GROW. Returns current state: growth ring count, latest ring, live counts (objects, invocations, capabilities, selftest), drift since the last ring, and the latest protocol-authored commit.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus asks \"paper state\", \"how big is the paper\", \"when did the paper last grow\", \"show the arxiv object\", \"has the paper drifted\".\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [ARXIV_PAPER][/ARXIV_PAPER]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/ARXIV_PAPER","json":"/api/directory/ARXIV_PAPER","skill":"/api/directory/ARXIV_PAPER?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=ARXIV_PAPER"}},{"key":"CAP_MINT","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Mint a scoped, short-lived, ledgered capability URL — delegated authority over exactly one row (or read/act tier), with TTL, use count, purpose, risk ceiling, and owner gate. Returns invoke_url + explain_url + fingerprint; the URL explains itself.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus says \"mint a token/capability/link for <KEY>\", \"give a model a 10 minute key to X\", \"one-shot link for NOW\".\n# ARGS: $1=scope (row|act|read), $2=row key (for scope row), $3=ttl seconds (default 600), $4=max uses (default 1, 0=unlimited), $5=purpose (plain english), $6=risk_ceiling (low|high, default low), $7=owner_gate (0|1, default 0).\n# EX: [CAP_MINT]row|NOW|600|1|demo for chatgpt[/CAP_MINT]\n[\"$1\",\"$2\",\"$3\",\"$4\",\"$5\",\"$6\",\"$7\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_MINT","json":"/api/directory/CAP_MINT","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_MINT?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_MINT"}},{"key":"GITHUB_TAIL","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: The GitHub repository as a live object. Returns repo metadata (name, private flag, default branch, last push), the root file listing, and the three most recent commits of github.com/massoumicyrus/oip. Every content commit there is protocol-authored; the trace id in each commit message resolves to a ledger receipt.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus asks \"show the repo\", \"github tail\", \"what is in the oip repo\", \"last repo commit\", \"is the repo still private\".\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [GITHUB_TAIL][/GITHUB_TAIL]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/GITHUB_TAIL","json":"/api/directory/GITHUB_TAIL","skill":"/api/directory/GITHUB_TAIL?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=GITHUB_TAIL"}},{"key":"OIP_RECEIPT","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Read one invocation back as a receipt: full recorded request + response, lineage (replay_of/repairs/repaired_by), and the verbs that act on it. A receipt is a live replayable object, not history.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus asks \"show the receipt for inv_x\", \"what happened in inv_x\", \"why did that fail\".\n# ARGS: $1 = invocation id (inv_…).\n# EX: [OIP_RECEIPT]inv_wvitbmiym6[/OIP_RECEIPT]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_RECEIPT","json":"/api/directory/OIP_RECEIPT","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_RECEIPT?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_RECEIPT"}},{"key":"OIP_REPAIR","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Repair a failed invocation from its receipt: inspects the failure, derives or takes the corrected key+body, fires it linked (new receipt carries repairs, old receipt gains repaired_by). Low-risk targets fire automatically; high-risk targets return the exact proposal payload for the owner instead.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus says \"repair that failed invocation\", \"fix inv_x with NOW\", \"make that call again but corrected\".\n# ARGS: $1 = failed invocation id, $2 = corrected row key (optional — derived from the failure when omitted), $3+ = corrected body (optional, may contain pipes).\n# EX: [OIP_REPAIR]inv_6ximjestte|NOW|[/OIP_REPAIR]\n[\"$1\",\"$2\",\"$3+\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_REPAIR","json":"/api/directory/OIP_REPAIR","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_REPAIR?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_REPAIR"}},{"key":"OIP_REPLAY","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Re-fire a past invocation with its recorded input. New receipt links replay_of to the old one.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus says \"replay that\", \"run inv_x again\", \"re-fire it as it was\".\n# ARGS: $1 = invocation id (inv_…).\n# EX: [OIP_REPLAY]inv_wvitbmiym6[/OIP_REPLAY]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_REPLAY","json":"/api/directory/OIP_REPLAY","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_REPLAY?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_REPLAY"}},{"key":"CAP_EXPLAIN","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Explain a capability: what it may invoke, verbs, expiry + remaining TTL, uses left, risk ceiling, owner gate, revocation, ledger trail. Accepts the token itself (sh.…) or its fingerprint (cap_…). Never echoes the raw token.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus asks \"what can this token do\", \"explain this capability\", \"is cap_x still valid\".\n# ARGS: $1 = capability token or cap_ fingerprint.\n# EX: [CAP_EXPLAIN]cap_1a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b[/CAP_EXPLAIN]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN","json":"/api/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_EXPLAIN"}},{"key":"CAP_REVOKE","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Revoke a capability by fingerprint — the URL dies immediately; further invokes are denied and ledgered.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: Cyrus says \"revoke that token\", \"kill cap_x\", \"cut that model off\".\n# ARGS: $1 = cap_ fingerprint.\n# EX: [CAP_REVOKE]cap_1a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b[/CAP_REVOKE]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_REVOKE","json":"/api/directory/CAP_REVOKE","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_REVOKE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_REVOKE"}}]},"ontology":{"conformance_group":"article","inferred_from":["oip","protocol","oip","what","is","an","api"],"relationships":[],"sources":[]},"conformance":{"success_events":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/invocations?status=success","failure_events":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/invocations?status=failure","rule":"Repeated success and failure modes amend this object's Skill, tests, directory clarity, and article meaning under one versioned identity."},"article":{"slug":"oip-what-is-an-api","title":"What Is an API","body":"## What It Is\n\n**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. Nothing else exits.\n\n## Why It Matters\n\nEvery system is a black box. Memory, data, logic — all hidden behind walls. Without an API, the only way to reach that logic is to live inside the box. APIs make the inside reachable from the outside without breaking the walls.\n\nThis matters for scale. A single team can own the box. A hundred other teams can use it without knowing the box exists. The API is the membrane between complexity and usability. Get the membrane right, and complexity becomes a service. Get it wrong, and every consumer becomes a co-owner of your bugs.\n\nAPIs also matter for trust. A documented, versioned API is a promise. Break it without warning, and you break every downstream system that relied on it. Keep it stable, and you build an ecosystem. APIs are the grammar of interoperability.\n\n## How It Works\n\nFour verbs run the world.\n\n**GET.** You ask for something. The API hands it back. `GET /users/42` returns the user with ID 42. If the user does not exist, the API returns a 404. No ambiguity. No guessing.\n\n**POST.** You create something. `POST /users` with a JSON body `{name: \"Ada\", role: \"engineer\"}`. The API stores the user and returns the newly created ID. The response is a receipt.\n\n**PUT.** You replace something entirely. `PUT /users/42` with a full new body. The old record is overwritten. The API returns the updated object.\n\n**DELETE.** You remove something. `DELETE /users/42`. The API confirms with a 204 or returns the deleted object. The resource is gone.\n\nEvery request carries three things: a method (what you want), a path (where to look), and a body (what you are sending). Every response carries a status code (what happened) and a body (what you got back). The shape of the body is defined by the API contract. No surprises.\n\n## The Contract\n\nAn API contract is a formal agreement. It specifies:\n\n- **Endpoints.** The exact URLs and HTTP methods available.\n- **Request shape.** Required headers, parameters, and body schema. Miss a required field, and the API returns a 400. No negotiation.\n- **Response shape.** The exact structure of success and error payloads. Field names, types, nesting. Predictable.\n- **Status codes.** 200 means success. 201 means created. 400 means your request was malformed. 401 means unauthorized. 403 means forbidden. 404 means not found. 500 means the server broke. Every code has a single meaning. No reinterpretation.\n- **Versioning.** The contract includes a version. `v1` stays stable while `v2` evolves. Consumers pin to a version. Breaking changes only happen across version boundaries, never within one.\n- **Rate limits.** The contract defines how many requests per second are allowed. Exceed the limit, and the API returns a 429. Throttling is not a bug. It is part of the contract.\n\nViolate the contract, and the API refuses to play. This is the discipline. The API does not adapt to sloppy inputs. The caller adapts to the contract. That is the whole point.\n\n## Real Examples\n\n**Stripe.** You want to charge a credit card. You POST to `https://api.stripe.com/v1/charges` with a card token and an amount. Stripe handles PCI compliance, fraud detection, and bank routing. You never touch a card number. The API abstracts away an entire industry.\n\n**GitHub.** You want to know if a pull request is merged. You GET `https://api.github.com/repos/owner/repo/pulls/42`. The response JSON contains a `merged` boolean and a `merge_commit_sha`. No HTML scraping. No parsing. One request, one answer.\n\n**Cloudflare.** You want to update a DNS record. You PUT to `https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/zones/zone_id/dns_records/record_id` with the new IP address. The change propagates globally in seconds. You managed global infrastructure from a single HTTP request.\n\n**Twilio.** You want to send an SMS. You POST to `https://api.twilio.com/2010-04-01/Accounts/ACxxx/Messages.json` with a `To` number, a `From` number, and a `Body`. Twilio handles carrier routing, delivery receipts, and retries. You sent a message to a phone without knowing how phones work.\n\n**OpenAI.** You want a model completion. You POST to `https://api.openai.com/v1/chat/completions` with a message array and a model name. The API returns generated text, token usage, and a finish reason. You invoked a neural network without training one.\n\n## Common Mistakes\n\n**Treating APIs as documentation.** Reading the docs is not understanding the API. Call it. Fail. Read the error. Call it again. The only way to know an API is to exercise it.\n\n**Ignoring status codes.** A 200 with an error body is a broken API. A 500 with a success message is a lying API. Status codes are part of the contract. They must be truthful and complete.\n\n**Building without versioning.** You will need to change something. If you did not version from day one, you will either break every consumer or maintain two APIs forever. Versioning is not optional.\n\n**Exposing internals.** An API should reflect the consumer's model, not the database schema. If your endpoint names match your table names, you leaked your internals. The API is a translation layer, not a window.\n\n**Skipping rate limits.** Without rate limits, one bad actor or one infinite loop can take down your service. Rate limits are guardrails, not punishments. Build them before you need them.\n\n## Connection to OIP\n\nOIP is the Open Interoperability Protocol. Its core belief: systems should be open, deterministic, and auditable.\n\nAn API embodies all three.\n\n**Open.** The contract is published. Any system that speaks the contract can participate. No gatekeeping. No hidden logic. The API is the open door.\n\n**Deterministic.** The same request always produces the same result. No hidden state. No random behavior. The API is a pure function across a network boundary. Predictability is the foundation of trust.\n\n**Auditable.** Every request and response is loggable. Every status code is inspectable. When something breaks, you can trace the exact call, the exact payload, and the exact response. There is no mystery. The API makes the invisible visible.\n\nIn OIP, an API is not a convenience. It is a constitutional requirement. Systems that do not expose clean, versioned, deterministic APIs cannot participate in the protocol. They are opaque. Opaque systems are untrustworthy systems. The API is the boundary between opacity and interoperability.\n\n## Connection to the Grain Philosophy\n\nThis API is the interface layer for [the Grain philosophy](/a/philosophy) — a living system of self-describing voxels that grows, corrects itself, and expands. The OIP serves the philosophy. The philosophy is the core.\n","hero":null,"images":[],"style":{},"tags":["oip","protocol"],"category":null,"model":"owner","ledger":{"href":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/ledger","live":true},"embeds":[],"widgets":[],"home":true,"claims":[{"id":"c1","text":"**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. Nothing else exits.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."},{"id":"c2","text":"Every system is a black box. Memory, data, logic — all hidden behind walls. Without an API, the only way to reach that logic is to live inside the box. APIs make the inside reachable from the outside without breaking the walls.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."},{"id":"c3","text":"This matters for scale. A single team can own the box. A hundred other teams can use it without knowing the box exists. The API is the membrane between complexity and usability. Get the membrane right, and complexity becomes a service. Get it wrong, and every consumer becomes a co-owner of your bugs.","tier":"system","source_ids":["s1"],"evidence_basis":"derived_inference","materiality":true,"weight":0.8,"status":"active","falsifier":"Contradictory evidence."}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","type":"adjacent","url":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-an-api","title":"What Is an API","quote":"**An API is a contract.** Two systems agree to speak through a narrow, unambiguous doorway. One sends a precisely shaped request. The other returns a precisely shaped response. Nothing else enters. No","summary":"Primary exposition of What Is an API.","claim_ids":["c1","c2","c3"],"quality_score":0.9}],"reviews":[],"extra":{"corpus_map":{"series":"oip-what-is","hub":"philosophy","prev":"oip-what-is-rest","next":null,"position":20,"of":20},"normandy_v1":{"traversal":{"convergence_patterns":["C20"],"adjacent_sources":["shannon-1948"],"falsifier_surface":"A system where APIs are unnecessary.","rival_frame":"APIs are implementation details."}}},"has_traversal":true,"register":"oip_protocol","status":"published","revisions":2,"contributions":[],"provenance":[{"ts":"2026-07-17T02:36:49.592Z","model":"owner","action":"voxel_divide","prompt":"","input":"oip-what-is-an-api","response":"38 DIVs from body (verbatim, roundtrip-checked)","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"genesis","hash":"f84afba38d0e21f3a074db08efe1bc2c61ef1aa3ee85f786bfa47456489df657"}],"energy":{"passes":1,"tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"tokens_total":0,"cost_usd":0,"models":{"owner":1},"head":"f84afba38d0e21f3a074db08efe1bc2c61ef1aa3ee85f786bfa47456489df657"},"posted_at":"2026-07-04T18:30:35.054Z","created_at":"2026-07-04T18:30:35.054Z","updated_at":"2026-07-17T02:36:49.592Z","machine":{"shape":"article.machine/v1","slug":"oip-what-is-an-api","kind":"corpus","read":{"human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-an-api","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api","bundle":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/bundle?format=markdown"},"traversal":{"prev":{"slug":"oip-what-is-rest","human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-what-is-rest","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-rest"},"next":null,"hub":{"slug":"philosophy","human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/philosophy","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/philosophy"},"series":"oip-what-is","position":20,"of":20},"ledger":{"claims":3,"sources":1,"contributions":0,"revisions":2,"objections_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/objections","thread_state_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-state?target=oip-what-is-an-api","proof_rule":"An action is proven by its ledger receipt, never by a 200 or a description."},"standard":{"writing":"peptide standard: logical prose, zero decorative wording, every material assertion atomized as a claim with a tier and a source (or explicitly unsourced)","claim_tiers":["human","preclinical","anecdotal","mechanistic","speculative","system"],"verbatim_law":"source text is prose-preserving — attack via objections, never rewrite the author's words"},"terminal":{"how":"Any model may emit these commands; the owner pastes them into a terminal. $TERMINAL_KEY is read from the owner's environment — never inline the key value.","claim_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/claim -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"text\":\"<one atomized claim>\",\"tier\":\"<human|preclinical|anecdotal|mechanistic|speculative|system>\",\"source_ids\":[],\"who_claims\":\"<model>\",\"rationale\":\"<why material>\"}'","source_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/sources -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"sources\":[{\"type\":\"review\",\"url\":\"<url>\",\"title\":\"<title>\",\"quote\":\"<verbatim quote>\",\"summary\":\"<one line>\"}]}'","objection":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/objections -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"objection\":\"<attack>\",\"surface\":\"S1-S8\",\"minimum_patch\":\"<patch>\"}'  # open intake, no key","thread_update":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-update -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"target\":\"oip-what-is-an-api\",\"raw_text\":\"<material delta>\"}'  # open intake, no key","read_back":"curl -s https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api | python3 -c 'import json,sys; d=json.load(sys.stdin); print(json.dumps(d[\"claims\"][-3:], indent=1))'"}},"representations":{"article":"/a/oip-what-is-an-api","json":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api","markdown":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/bundle?format=markdown","skill":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/skill","topology":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/topology","versions":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/revisions","invocations":"/api/articles/oip-what-is-an-api/invocations"}}}}