# Start Here (OCT)

This is the easiest path for understanding OCT in this repository.

## Step-by-Step Path

1. Read `README.md` (what OCT means here).
2. Read `OCT_BOOK/OCT_FOUNDATIONAL_BOOK_CHAPTER_01_v1_0.md` (book opening).
3. Read `OCT_FULL/OCT_FOUNDATIONAL_BOOK_FULL_v1_0.md` (full single-file manuscript).
4. Read `OCT_BOOK_LATEX/README.md` (Overleaf-ready LaTeX package).
5. Read `validation/OCT_PUBLICATION_PROGRESS_TRACKER_v0_1.md` (validation status).
6. Read `validation/OCT_UPDATE_PLAN_v5_3.md` (current hardening roadmap).
7. Read `validation/OCT_EX_ANTE_PROXY_GATE_POLICY_v0_1.md` (mandatory gate policy).
8. Read `validation/templates/OCT_PROXY_PREVALIDATION_SHEET_v0_1.md` (required template before any new cycle).
9. Read `validation/CYCLE_5_2026-05-01/CYCLE_5_OVERVIEW_v0_1.md` (A01/D02/D03 refactor specs).
10. Read `validation/runtime/README.md` (runtime schemas and compliance check).

## If You Only Want the Bottom Line

1. OCT here is a formal research theory.
2. It is presented with validation workflow and reproducibility artifacts.
3. Legacy preprint files are kept, but `OCT_BOOK` and `OCT_FULL` are the current manuscript track.
4. It is not a medical OCT repository.