extract-empirical-regularity

Purpose

Extract a repeatable empirical pattern from records while preserving conditions, exceptions, and uncertainty.

Input contract

required: [observations, variable_schema, condition_schema]
optional: [replication_records, measurement_uncertainty]
constraints: [regularity claims require multiple comparable observations or an explicit single-case limitation]

Procedure

1. Normalize observations, units, and conditions.
2. Identify repeated associations, trends, or invariants.
3. Test exceptions, alternative explanations, and measurement artifacts.
4. State the regularity with scope and uncertainty boundaries.

If the regularity is stable enough to express through measurable factors and outcomes, consider identify-variables as the next tactic.

Output contract

produces: [regularity_statement, supporting_records, exception_set, scope_conditions]
delta_fields: [findings, evidence_updates, uncertainties, open_questions]

Quality gates

• Conditions and exceptions accompany every regularity.
• Correlation is not labeled mechanism without supporting evidence.

Failure and counterexamples

Do not generalize a pattern across changed populations or protocols without a comparability check.

Provenance map

• resolved: extract-empirical-regularity