# Start Here (First Time)

This guide is written for a reader who opens the project for the first time.
It uses plain words throughout.

## In One Sentence

This project is a research framework that explains:
1. how an AI should reason (`TE`), and
2. how a formal theory (`OCT`) is tested with documents and datasets.

## If You Have 5 Minutes

1. Read `README.md` (what the repository is).
2. Read `SIMPLE_GLOSSARY.md` (plain words for key terms).
3. Read `SUPER_SIMPLE_FAQ.md` (short answers to common confusion points).

## If You Have 20 Minutes

1. Read `README.md`.
2. Read `TE_BOOTLOADER_v7.1.1.md`, then `TE_CORE_v5.2.1.md` (entry point and core rules for the framework; `TE_PROTOCOLS_v1.1.md` holds the always-active protocols).
3. Read `OCT/README.md` (what OCT is in this repository).
4. Read `OCT/OCT_BOOK/OCT_FOUNDATIONAL_BOOK_CHAPTER_01_v1_0.md` (main OCT book start).
5. For the full manuscript in a single file, open `OCT/OCT_FULL/OCT_FOUNDATIONAL_BOOK_FULL_v1_0.md`.

## If You Want Evidence and Validation

1. Open `OCT/validation/OCT_PUBLICATION_PROGRESS_TRACKER_v0_1.md`.
2. Open `datasets/cycle3_inputs/` and `datasets/cycle4_outputs/`.
3. Open scripts in `datasets/cycle3_work/` and `datasets/cycle4_work/`.

## If You Feel Lost

Use this recovery path:
1. Return to `README.md`.
2. Read `SIMPLE_GLOSSARY.md`.
3. Read `INDEX.md` and follow one section at a time.