Infrastructure · Data Structures
Hierarchy
Vertical rank ordering with Upper/Lower relations, inheritance, and authority
Definition
Mechanism
The vertical ranking of Categorys or objects: every pair related by the ranking stands in an Upper/Lower relation. What the ranking *carries* varies by kind — a class hierarchy carries inheritance, an organisational one carries authority, a containment one carries neither — so those are implementer concerns rather than part of the ranking itself.
Invariants
- Acyclicity: no node is above itself, directly or transitively — a cycle leaves the ranking undefined.
- Antisymmetry: if A is Upper to B then B is not Upper to A.
Risks
Failure modes
None stated.
Relationships
Builds on
References
Grouping of objects
Used by
References
Mind
Hierarchical context management
Mind
Hierarchical verification strategy
Society
Link decisions at different scales so that each level can correct the others
A link stating that a child concept is a kind or realization of its parent, forming the route by which problems are located
The atomic unit of intent
Reference
Data schema
{
"type": "object",
"required": [
"levels",
"relationships"
],
"properties": {
"levels": {
"type": "array",
"description": "Ordered ranks (Top -> Bottom)"
},
"relationships": {
"type": "object",
"description": "Parent-Child map"
},
"root_id": {
"type": "string",
"description": "Apex node"
}
}
}