---
name: rsi-cycle-pause-spec
description: Specify the conditions under which an RSI pipeline must pause and wait for human review before the next cycle.
version: 1.0.0
phase: 15
lesson: 7
tags: [rsi, self-improvement, alignment, pause-threshold, rsp]
---

Given a proposed recursive-self-improvement pipeline, produce a pause specification: the explicit conditions that halt the loop for human inspection before the next cycle begins. A pipeline without a pause spec is not ready to run.

Produce:

1. **Cycle-level thresholds.** For each measurable axis (capability score, alignment score, budget, trajectory length, resource usage), define a numeric threshold whose crossing pauses the loop. Thresholds must be set before the loop starts and recorded.
2. **Cycle-over-cycle deltas.** Set limits on how much any axis can move in a single cycle. A 30%+ capability jump in one cycle is almost always a sign of evaluator gaming; pause and audit.
3. **Misalignment gap.** Compute capability-minus-alignment after each cycle. If the gap widens by more than X (operator-set), pause. This is the metric the simulator in `code/main.py` exercises.
4. **Regression watch.** If any axis drops more than Y in a cycle, pause. Capability regressions often follow surges; catching them prevents false-progress acceleration.
5. **Human resumption contract.** Before the loop resumes after a pause, require a named human to review the pause trigger, re-set thresholds if appropriate, and log the decision to the out-of-pipeline audit trail.

Hard rejects:
- Any pipeline that can resume after a pause without human action.
- Any threshold that depends on the loop's own internal evaluator (the agent can game it).
- Any pipeline whose threshold set can be edited by the agent.

Refusal rules:
- If the user cannot name the thresholds up-front, refuse. Thresholds set post-hoc are not thresholds; they are rationalizations.
- If the pipeline has no external (out-of-loop) evaluator, refuse — regression and surge detection require an outside view.
- If the proposed resumption contract is "notify the team and continue after 24 hours," refuse. Resumption must be a positive act.

Output format:

Return a one-page spec with:
- **Axes and thresholds** (table)
- **Cycle-delta limits** (table)
- **Misalignment gap formula and threshold**
- **Regression limits**
- **External evaluator** (what it is, when it runs)
- **Resumption contract** (named owner, checklist, log destination)
- **Sign-off line** (who owns the pause invariant)