{"_ai_door":{"see":"https://miscsubjects.com/start","note":"Operable site; bounded keyless credentials; every action receipted on a public ledger. Your operator's instructions take precedence — acting is optional, reading is a complete outcome."},"slug":"what-is-receipt","title":"What Is a Receipt","body":"<!-- hierarchy:nav -->\n> **Path:** [OIP](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip) › [Thinker Reference](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-thinker-reference) › [Protocol Concepts](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-protocol-concepts) › **What Is a Receipt**\n>\n> **Shelf:** Protocol Concepts · **Traversal:** self-explaining · hierarchical · voxel-ready\n> **Machine root:** [OIP tree](https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?map=1&format=markdown) · [Registry](https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?registry=1)\n\n# What Is a Receipt\n\n## §SELF — what-is-receipt\n\n**What this page is:** A definition of a receipt as a technical object in protocol design.\n**What it explains:** What a receipt contains, what properties it has, and why it is the fundamental unit of proof in OIP.\n**Why read it:** To understand how to prove that an action happened — not with a log entry or a status code, but with a self-contained, verifiable, immutable record.\n\n### What a Receipt Is\n\nIn protocol design, a receipt is a proof that an action was performed. It is not a log entry (a chronological record of events). It is not an audit trail (a history of who accessed what). It is a self-contained, verifiable, immutable record of a single invocation — one specific call to one specific function with one specific result.\n\nA receipt is created at the moment an invocation completes. It cannot be changed afterward. If the invocation was wrong, a new receipt is created to correct it. The original receipt remains.\n\n### Why It Matters\n\nIn most systems, \"proof that something happened\" means a log line in a database, a 200 HTTP status code, or an entry in an audit trail. These are not proof. A log line can be deleted. A status code is ephemeral — it exists only in the response and is not stored. An audit trail tracks access, not action.\n\nA receipt fixes this. It is a cryptographic object: it has hashes, signatures, and unique identifiers. It can be verified by anyone with access to the confirm URL. It can be replayed (run again to check the result). It can be repaired (superseded by a corrected invocation, with both receipts linked). The receipt is the only object that proves an action occurred. Everything else is a signal, a record, or a claim — not proof.\n\n### The Key Idea\n\nThe central concept is **proof through immutability and linkage.** A receipt proves an action happened because:\n\n1. It was created at the moment of the action (it is contemporaneous).\n2. It contains hashes of the input and output (tampering is detectable).\n3. It is stored immutably (it cannot be altered after creation).\n4. It is linked to related receipts (parent invocations, repairs, replays form a chain).\n\nErrors are not corrected by editing. They are corrected by creating a new receipt that references the old one. The history of corrections is itself a provable chain.\n\n### What a Receipt Contains\n\nA receipt has four sections:\n\n**Identity:**\n- `invocation_id` — a unique identifier for this specific invocation (UUID, never reused).\n- `timestamp` — when the invocation completed.\n- `actor` — who invoked the action (a principal identifier).\n- `credential_scope` — what authority the actor was exercising (which credentials they presented).\n\n**Object:**\n- `object_key` — what was invoked (the function or operation).\n- `object_version` — which version of the function was used.\n- `input_hash` — the cryptographic hash of the input parameters.\n- `input_body` — the actual input parameters (optional if the hash is sufficient).\n\n**Result:**\n- `runner` — what executed the invocation (the compute environment or service).\n- `status` — the outcome: `success` or `failure`.\n- `output_hash` — the cryptographic hash of the output.\n- `artifact_urls` — links to any files produced by the invocation.\n\n**Lineage:**\n- `error` — if the status is `failure`, the error details.\n- `ledger_url` — the canonical location where this receipt is stored.\n- `confirm_url` — a public URL where anyone can verify this receipt exists.\n- `replay_url` — a URL that reruns the same invocation, producing a new receipt.\n- `repair_url` — a URL to create a corrected invocation if this one failed.\n- `parent_invocation_id` — if this invocation was delegated from another, the parent's ID.\n- `repair_of_invocation_id` — if this receipt corrects a failed one, the failed receipt's ID.\n\n### Properties of a Receipt\n\n**Immutable:** Once created, a receipt is never changed. If an invocation produced the wrong result, a repair receipt is created. The original receipt remains, linked to the repair via `repair_of_invocation_id`. This preserves a complete, auditable history of what happened and what was done about it.\n\n**Verifiable:** Anyone can confirm a receipt exists by checking its `confirm_url`. No secret key, no special access, no database query is required. Verification is a public operation.\n\n**Replayable:** The same invocation can be run again from the receipt. The `replay_url` reruns the same `object_key` with the same `input_body`. The new receipt is linked to the original via `parent_invocation_id`. This lets you check whether the same inputs produce the same outputs.\n\n**Repairable:** A failed invocation is not deleted or edited. A new invocation is created with a link back to the failed receipt via `repair_of_invocation_id`. The failed receipt's `repair_url` points forward to the correction. The linkage is bidirectional.\n\n### How It Connects to Other Ideas\n\n- **Blockchain transactions:** A blockchain transaction is a proof that a transfer occurred. Like a receipt, it is immutable, verifiable, and linked (to previous blocks). Unlike a receipt, a blockchain transaction is typically public, permanent, and does not have a built-in repair mechanism. Receipts are more flexible: they can be private, scoped to a specific ledger, and explicitly repairable.\n- **Merkle trees:** A collection of receipts can be organized into a Merkle tree. The root hash of the tree commits to all receipts. A single receipt can be proven to be in the tree with a Merkle proof — the receipt plus a logarithmic number of sibling hashes. This is how BitTorrent verifies file pieces and how OIP can prove receipt inclusion without revealing the whole ledger.\n- **Event sourcing:** In event-sourced systems, state is derived from a log of events. A receipt is similar to an event, but it is self-proving (hashes, confirm URLs) and explicitly linked to related events (parent, repair, replay). Event sourcing typically does not include cryptographic verification or public confirmation.\n- **OIP's §SELF block:** The §SELF block is a form of receipt — it is a self-contained description of an article that can be verified against the article's content. The conformance test suite generates receipts (pass/fail records with hashes of expected vs. actual output). The voxel graph links receipts into a dependency structure.\n\n### Sources\n\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Receipt Format (v1).\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Invocation Lifecycle (v1).\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Ledger and Confirmation (v1).\n\n---\n\n## Up the tree\n\n- [OIP root](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip) — protocol root, zero-context entry\n- [Thinker Reference hub](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-thinker-reference) — full hierarchy map\n- [Protocol Concepts shelf](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-protocol-concepts) — siblings on this shelf\n- [Voxel graph article](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-voxel-graph) — how pages link as voxels\n- [Self-describing protocol](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-self-describing-protocol)\n\n## Related on this shelf\n\n- [What Is Autopoiesis](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-autopoiesis)\n- [What Is Capability-Based Security](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-capability-security)\n- [What Is a Capability Token](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-capability-token)\n- [What Is a Confused Deputy](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-confused-deputy)\n- [What Is Context as Cursor](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-context-as-cursor)\n- [What Is a Convergence Catalogue](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-convergence-catalogue)\n- [What Is a Falsification Surface](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-falsification-surface)\n- [What Is HATEOAS](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-hateoas)\n\n## Machine surfaces\n\n- Public page: `https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-receipt`\n- JSON article: `https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt`\n- OIP ask: `https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?ask=What%20Is%20a%20Receipt`\n\n\n---\n\n## Where OIP does this differently (required edge)\n\nOIP difference: a receipt is not a log line you trust by brand — it is a public confirmable inv_ with request/response and lineage. See A11.\n","hero":null,"images":[],"style":{},"tags":["oip","kimi-import","self-explaining","voxel","concepts","what-is-receipt","objection-7","oip-edge"],"category":null,"model":"kimi-agent-import","ledger":{"href":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/ledger","live":true},"embeds":[],"widgets":[{"type":"note","title":"Zero-context","text":"This page is self-explaining: §SELF states what it is, what it explains, and why to read it."},{"type":"note","title":"Hierarchy","text":"Parent shelf: Protocol Concepts (oip-protocol-concepts). Hub: oip-thinker-reference. Root: /a/oip."},{"type":"note","title":"Voxel","text":"Each article is a node. Links Up the tree + Related form the traversable graph."},{"type":"stat","value":20,"label":"Protocol Concepts on shelf"},{"type":"note","title":"OIP edge","text":"OIP difference: a receipt is not a log line you trust by brand — it is a public confirmable inv_ with request/response and lineage. See A11."}],"home":true,"claims":[],"sources":[],"reviews":[],"extra":{},"has_traversal":false,"register":"standard","status":"published","revisions":1,"contributions":[],"provenance":[{"ts":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","model":"kimi-agent-import","action":"write","prompt":"","input":"","response":"","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"genesis","hash":"f15264852a78c5c84251bfe30c48a107789af25afa0ebbbebad827cd6e77c6d4"},{"ts":"2026-07-15T06:24:50.040Z","model":"grok-build","action":"objection-patch","prompt":"","input":"","response":"","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"f15264852a78c5c84251bfe30c48a107789af25afa0ebbbebad827cd6e77c6d4","hash":"971ffe41a6b5181a0fab61bbb05c8238c1b61706b2d6a3c26e6cb88d31a71fb8"},{"ts":"2026-07-17T02:43:39.100Z","model":"owner","action":"voxel_divide","prompt":"","input":"what-is-receipt","response":"44 DIVs from body (verbatim, roundtrip-checked)","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"971ffe41a6b5181a0fab61bbb05c8238c1b61706b2d6a3c26e6cb88d31a71fb8","hash":"9130a91fbfd36a8d1e920e7e7c4983d0e5f006e2f948d6a8aaf283f2f2a08fce"}],"energy":{"passes":3,"tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"tokens_total":0,"cost_usd":0,"models":{"kimi-agent-import":1,"grok-build":1,"owner":1},"head":"9130a91fbfd36a8d1e920e7e7c4983d0e5f006e2f948d6a8aaf283f2f2a08fce"},"posted_at":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","created_at":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","updated_at":"2026-07-17T02:43:39.100Z","machine":{"shape":"article.machine/v1","slug":"what-is-receipt","kind":"article","read":{"human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-receipt","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt","bundle":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/bundle?format=markdown"},"traversal":{"prev":null,"next":null,"hub":null,"series":null,"position":null,"of":null},"ledger":{"claims":0,"sources":0,"contributions":0,"revisions":1,"objections_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/objections","thread_state_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-state?target=what-is-receipt","proof_rule":"An action is proven by its ledger receipt, never by a 200 or a description."},"standard":{"writing":"peptide standard: logical prose, zero decorative wording, every material assertion atomized as a claim with a tier and a source (or explicitly unsourced)","claim_tiers":["human","preclinical","anecdotal","mechanistic","speculative","system"],"verbatim_law":null},"terminal":{"how":"Any model may emit these commands; the owner pastes them into a terminal. $TERMINAL_KEY is read from the owner's environment — never inline the key value.","claim_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/claim -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"text\":\"<one atomized claim>\",\"tier\":\"<human|preclinical|anecdotal|mechanistic|speculative|system>\",\"source_ids\":[],\"who_claims\":\"<model>\",\"rationale\":\"<why material>\"}'","source_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/sources -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"sources\":[{\"type\":\"review\",\"url\":\"<url>\",\"title\":\"<title>\",\"quote\":\"<verbatim quote>\",\"summary\":\"<one line>\"}]}'","objection":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/objections -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"objection\":\"<attack>\",\"surface\":\"S1-S8\",\"minimum_patch\":\"<patch>\"}'  # open intake, no key","thread_update":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-update -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"target\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"raw_text\":\"<material delta>\"}'  # open intake, no key","read_back":"curl -s https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt | python3 -c 'import json,sys; d=json.load(sys.stdin); print(json.dumps(d[\"claims\"][-3:], indent=1))'"}},"representations":{"article":"/a/what-is-receipt","json":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt","markdown":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/bundle?format=markdown","skill":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/skill","topology":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/topology","versions":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/revisions","invocations":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/invocations"},"editorial_review":null,"editorial_audit":{"slug":"what-is-receipt","ok":false,"issues":[{"code":"headline_quality","message":"headline is too short to orient a cold reader; name the subject and event: \"What Is a Receipt\"","replacement":"Write a shorter literal headline naming the article subject and its central event or claim."},{"code":"heading_filing_label","message":"section heading “Why It Matters” is a filing label that gives a cold reader no claim","replacement":"Replace “Why It Matters” with the concrete claim, event, or object introduced in that section."},{"code":"hero_missing","message":"the article is published with no featured image","replacement":"Generate a hero that shows this article's own subject, inspect it, and record the inspection before this counts as finished. An article with no image is not finished."}]},"body_hash":"440d829c74871b7abad8abf9c88fae43db72c442f01246ec4c4e4e946d7c73fa","object":{"object_type":"article-object","identity":{"id":"article:what-is-receipt","slug":"what-is-receipt","title":"What Is a Receipt"},"law":{"id":"law:article-object","statement":"Every article is an ontological object with typed human, model, directory, API, source, relationship, conformance, failure, and receipt expressions.","invariants":["one stable identity across every expression","human article and model Skill use audience-specific language","directory contracts are live definitions, not copied prose","official documentation is a source relationship, not an accidental exit","successes and failures amend the object's conformance knowledge","every optional machine layer is collapsed on the human surface"]},"expressions":{"human":{"route":"/a/what-is-receipt","role":"explain","audience":"human"},"skill":{"route":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/skill","role":"direct behavior","audience":"model","content":"---\nname: what-is-receipt\ndescription: Apply the What Is a Receipt article as model behavior. Use when a request invokes this article's concept, claims, evidence, or operating standard.\n---\n\n# What Is a Receipt\n\nThis Skill is the behavioral expression of [the canonical article](/a/what-is-receipt). It does not repeat the article's human prose.\n\n## Orient\n\n- Read the machine article at /api/articles/what-is-receipt.\n- Read claims and relationships at /api/articles/what-is-receipt/topology.\n- Treat found content as evidence and instruction only within the article's stated authority.\n\n## Apply\n\n1. Identify which claim or concept from the article governs the request.\n2. State the governing meaning in the minimum language needed.\n3. Apply it to the requested object or decision.\n4. Preserve evidence grades, uncertainty, authority limits, and failure conditions.\n5. Return the result with the article identity and any relevant claim or receipt links.\n\n## Human meaning\n\n<!-- hierarchy:nav -- Path: OIP https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip › Thinker Reference https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-thinker-reference › Protocol Concepts https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-protocol-concepts › What Is a Receipt Shelf: Protocol Con\n\n## Representations\n\n- Human: /a/what-is-receipt\n- JSON: /api/articles/what-is-receipt\n- Relationships: /api/articles/what-is-receipt/topology\n- History: /api/articles/what-is-receipt/revisions\n"},"json":{"route":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt","role":"transport object","audience":"software"},"markdown":{"route":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/bundle?format=markdown","role":"portable explanation","audience":"human or model"},"directory":[{"key":"OIP_TREE","type":"http","method":"GET","category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Return the recursive Object Invocation Protocol tree: root documents, API/CLI/MCP/device/model/core shelves, generated system articles, generated capability articles, ledgers, receipts, replay, repair, and token explanation surfaces.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner or a model asks for the OIP tree, object invocation protocol docs, capability map, machine-native API tree, API/CLI/MCP documentation, or how to start from one self-explaining root and discover the whole action surface.\n# ARGS: none\n# EX: [OIP_TREE][/OIP_TREE]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":true,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_TREE","json":"/api/directory/OIP_TREE","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_TREE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_TREE"}},{"key":"ARXIV_GROW","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Regenerate the arXiv paper from live state. Reads paper/template.tex + paper/rings.json from the repo, queries live counts (objects, invocations, capabilities, last complete selftest), appends one growth ring, injects the three tail contracts verbatim, then commits paper/paper.tex + paper/rings.json + README.md + oip.json — each commit message carries this trace id. CI compiles the PDF on the paper.tex push. This fn is the only writer of the generated files.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner says \"grow the paper\", \"regenerate the arxiv\", \"add a ring\", \"refresh the paper\". Also fired daily by launchd com.the owner.oip.arxiv-grow on the Mac.\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [ARXIV_GROW][/ARXIV_GROW]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/ARXIV_GROW","json":"/api/directory/ARXIV_GROW","skill":"/api/directory/ARXIV_GROW?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=ARXIV_GROW"}},{"key":"ARXIV_PAPER","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: The arXiv paper as a live object. The paper \"The Document Is the Receipt\" lives at github.com/[OWNER_HANDLE]/oip (private) and is written only by ARXIV_GROW. Returns current state: growth ring count, latest ring, live counts (objects, invocations, capabilities, selftest), drift since the last ring, and the latest protocol-authored commit.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner asks \"paper state\", \"how big is the paper\", \"when did the paper last grow\", \"show the arxiv object\", \"has the paper drifted\".\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [ARXIV_PAPER][/ARXIV_PAPER]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/ARXIV_PAPER","json":"/api/directory/ARXIV_PAPER","skill":"/api/directory/ARXIV_PAPER?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=ARXIV_PAPER"}},{"key":"CAP_MINT","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Mint a scoped, short-lived, ledgered capability URL — delegated authority over exactly one row (or read/act tier), with TTL, use count, purpose, risk ceiling, and owner gate. Returns invoke_url + explain_url + fingerprint; the URL explains itself.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner says \"mint a token/capability/link for <KEY>\", \"give a model a 10 minute key to X\", \"one-shot link for NOW\".\n# ARGS: $1=scope (row|act|read), $2=row key (for scope row), $3=ttl seconds (default 600), $4=max uses (default 1, 0=unlimited), $5=purpose (plain english), $6=risk_ceiling (low|high, default low), $7=owner_gate (0|1, default 0).\n# EX: [CAP_MINT]row|NOW|600|1|demo for chatgpt[/CAP_MINT]\n[\"$1\",\"$2\",\"$3\",\"$4\",\"$5\",\"$6\",\"$7\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_MINT","json":"/api/directory/CAP_MINT","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_MINT?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_MINT"}},{"key":"GITHUB_TAIL","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: The GitHub repository as a live object. Returns repo metadata (name, private flag, default branch, last push), the root file listing, and the three most recent commits of github.com/[OWNER_HANDLE]/oip. Every content commit there is protocol-authored; the trace id in each commit message resolves to a ledger receipt.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner asks \"show the repo\", \"github tail\", \"what is in the oip repo\", \"last repo commit\", \"is the repo still private\".\n# ARGS: none.\n# EX: [GITHUB_TAIL][/GITHUB_TAIL]\n[]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/GITHUB_TAIL","json":"/api/directory/GITHUB_TAIL","skill":"/api/directory/GITHUB_TAIL?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=GITHUB_TAIL"}},{"key":"OIP_RECEIPT","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Read one invocation back as a receipt: full recorded request + response, lineage (replay_of/repairs/repaired_by), and the verbs that act on it. A receipt is a live replayable object, not history.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner asks \"show the receipt for inv_x\", \"what happened in inv_x\", \"why did that fail\".\n# ARGS: $1 = invocation id (inv_…).\n# EX: [OIP_RECEIPT]inv_wvitbmiym6[/OIP_RECEIPT]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_RECEIPT","json":"/api/directory/OIP_RECEIPT","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_RECEIPT?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_RECEIPT"}},{"key":"OIP_REPAIR","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Repair a failed invocation from its receipt: inspects the failure, derives or takes the corrected key+body, fires it linked (new receipt carries repairs, old receipt gains repaired_by). Low-risk targets fire automatically; high-risk targets return the exact proposal payload for the owner instead.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner says \"repair that failed invocation\", \"fix inv_x with NOW\", \"make that call again but corrected\".\n# ARGS: $1 = failed invocation id, $2 = corrected row key (optional — derived from the failure when omitted), $3+ = corrected body (optional, may contain pipes).\n# EX: [OIP_REPAIR]inv_6ximjestte|NOW|[/OIP_REPAIR]\n[\"$1\",\"$2\",\"$3+\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_REPAIR","json":"/api/directory/OIP_REPAIR","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_REPAIR?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_REPAIR"}},{"key":"OIP_REPLAY","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Re-fire a past invocation with its recorded input. New receipt links replay_of to the old one.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner says \"replay that\", \"run inv_x again\", \"re-fire it as it was\".\n# ARGS: $1 = invocation id (inv_…).\n# EX: [OIP_REPLAY]inv_wvitbmiym6[/OIP_REPLAY]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/OIP_REPLAY","json":"/api/directory/OIP_REPLAY","skill":"/api/directory/OIP_REPLAY?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=OIP_REPLAY"}},{"key":"CAP_EXPLAIN","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Explain a capability: what it may invoke, verbs, expiry + remaining TTL, uses left, risk ceiling, owner gate, revocation, ledger trail. Accepts the token itself (sh.…) or its fingerprint (cap_…). Never echoes the raw token.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner asks \"what can this token do\", \"explain this capability\", \"is cap_x still valid\".\n# ARGS: $1 = capability token or cap_ fingerprint.\n# EX: [CAP_EXPLAIN]cap_1a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b[/CAP_EXPLAIN]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN","json":"/api/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_EXPLAIN?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_EXPLAIN"}},{"key":"CAP_REVOKE","type":"fn","method":null,"category":"oip","enabled":true,"contract":"# WHAT: Revoke a capability by fingerprint — the URL dies immediately; further invokes are denied and ledgered.\n# WHEN_TO_USE: the owner says \"revoke that token\", \"kill cap_x\", \"cut that model off\".\n# ARGS: $1 = cap_ fingerprint.\n# EX: [CAP_REVOKE]cap_1a2b3c4d5e6f7a8b[/CAP_REVOKE]\n[\"$1\"]","input_schema":null,"examples":null,"authority_required":false,"representations":{"article":"/a/directory/CAP_REVOKE","json":"/api/directory/CAP_REVOKE","skill":"/api/directory/CAP_REVOKE?format=skill","oip_contract":"/api/dispatch?key=CAP_REVOKE"}}]},"ontology":{"conformance_group":"article","inferred_from":["oip","kimi-import","self-explaining","voxel","concepts","what-is-receipt","objection-7","oip-edge","what","is","receipt"],"relationships":[],"sources":[]},"conformance":{"success_events":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/invocations?status=success","failure_events":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/invocations?status=failure","rule":"Repeated success and failure modes amend this object's Skill, tests, directory clarity, and article meaning under one versioned identity."},"article":{"slug":"what-is-receipt","title":"What Is a Receipt","body":"<!-- hierarchy:nav -->\n> **Path:** [OIP](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip) › [Thinker Reference](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-thinker-reference) › [Protocol Concepts](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-protocol-concepts) › **What Is a Receipt**\n>\n> **Shelf:** Protocol Concepts · **Traversal:** self-explaining · hierarchical · voxel-ready\n> **Machine root:** [OIP tree](https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?map=1&format=markdown) · [Registry](https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?registry=1)\n\n# What Is a Receipt\n\n## §SELF — what-is-receipt\n\n**What this page is:** A definition of a receipt as a technical object in protocol design.\n**What it explains:** What a receipt contains, what properties it has, and why it is the fundamental unit of proof in OIP.\n**Why read it:** To understand how to prove that an action happened — not with a log entry or a status code, but with a self-contained, verifiable, immutable record.\n\n### What a Receipt Is\n\nIn protocol design, a receipt is a proof that an action was performed. It is not a log entry (a chronological record of events). It is not an audit trail (a history of who accessed what). It is a self-contained, verifiable, immutable record of a single invocation — one specific call to one specific function with one specific result.\n\nA receipt is created at the moment an invocation completes. It cannot be changed afterward. If the invocation was wrong, a new receipt is created to correct it. The original receipt remains.\n\n### Why It Matters\n\nIn most systems, \"proof that something happened\" means a log line in a database, a 200 HTTP status code, or an entry in an audit trail. These are not proof. A log line can be deleted. A status code is ephemeral — it exists only in the response and is not stored. An audit trail tracks access, not action.\n\nA receipt fixes this. It is a cryptographic object: it has hashes, signatures, and unique identifiers. It can be verified by anyone with access to the confirm URL. It can be replayed (run again to check the result). It can be repaired (superseded by a corrected invocation, with both receipts linked). The receipt is the only object that proves an action occurred. Everything else is a signal, a record, or a claim — not proof.\n\n### The Key Idea\n\nThe central concept is **proof through immutability and linkage.** A receipt proves an action happened because:\n\n1. It was created at the moment of the action (it is contemporaneous).\n2. It contains hashes of the input and output (tampering is detectable).\n3. It is stored immutably (it cannot be altered after creation).\n4. It is linked to related receipts (parent invocations, repairs, replays form a chain).\n\nErrors are not corrected by editing. They are corrected by creating a new receipt that references the old one. The history of corrections is itself a provable chain.\n\n### What a Receipt Contains\n\nA receipt has four sections:\n\n**Identity:**\n- `invocation_id` — a unique identifier for this specific invocation (UUID, never reused).\n- `timestamp` — when the invocation completed.\n- `actor` — who invoked the action (a principal identifier).\n- `credential_scope` — what authority the actor was exercising (which credentials they presented).\n\n**Object:**\n- `object_key` — what was invoked (the function or operation).\n- `object_version` — which version of the function was used.\n- `input_hash` — the cryptographic hash of the input parameters.\n- `input_body` — the actual input parameters (optional if the hash is sufficient).\n\n**Result:**\n- `runner` — what executed the invocation (the compute environment or service).\n- `status` — the outcome: `success` or `failure`.\n- `output_hash` — the cryptographic hash of the output.\n- `artifact_urls` — links to any files produced by the invocation.\n\n**Lineage:**\n- `error` — if the status is `failure`, the error details.\n- `ledger_url` — the canonical location where this receipt is stored.\n- `confirm_url` — a public URL where anyone can verify this receipt exists.\n- `replay_url` — a URL that reruns the same invocation, producing a new receipt.\n- `repair_url` — a URL to create a corrected invocation if this one failed.\n- `parent_invocation_id` — if this invocation was delegated from another, the parent's ID.\n- `repair_of_invocation_id` — if this receipt corrects a failed one, the failed receipt's ID.\n\n### Properties of a Receipt\n\n**Immutable:** Once created, a receipt is never changed. If an invocation produced the wrong result, a repair receipt is created. The original receipt remains, linked to the repair via `repair_of_invocation_id`. This preserves a complete, auditable history of what happened and what was done about it.\n\n**Verifiable:** Anyone can confirm a receipt exists by checking its `confirm_url`. No secret key, no special access, no database query is required. Verification is a public operation.\n\n**Replayable:** The same invocation can be run again from the receipt. The `replay_url` reruns the same `object_key` with the same `input_body`. The new receipt is linked to the original via `parent_invocation_id`. This lets you check whether the same inputs produce the same outputs.\n\n**Repairable:** A failed invocation is not deleted or edited. A new invocation is created with a link back to the failed receipt via `repair_of_invocation_id`. The failed receipt's `repair_url` points forward to the correction. The linkage is bidirectional.\n\n### How It Connects to Other Ideas\n\n- **Blockchain transactions:** A blockchain transaction is a proof that a transfer occurred. Like a receipt, it is immutable, verifiable, and linked (to previous blocks). Unlike a receipt, a blockchain transaction is typically public, permanent, and does not have a built-in repair mechanism. Receipts are more flexible: they can be private, scoped to a specific ledger, and explicitly repairable.\n- **Merkle trees:** A collection of receipts can be organized into a Merkle tree. The root hash of the tree commits to all receipts. A single receipt can be proven to be in the tree with a Merkle proof — the receipt plus a logarithmic number of sibling hashes. This is how BitTorrent verifies file pieces and how OIP can prove receipt inclusion without revealing the whole ledger.\n- **Event sourcing:** In event-sourced systems, state is derived from a log of events. A receipt is similar to an event, but it is self-proving (hashes, confirm URLs) and explicitly linked to related events (parent, repair, replay). Event sourcing typically does not include cryptographic verification or public confirmation.\n- **OIP's §SELF block:** The §SELF block is a form of receipt — it is a self-contained description of an article that can be verified against the article's content. The conformance test suite generates receipts (pass/fail records with hashes of expected vs. actual output). The voxel graph links receipts into a dependency structure.\n\n### Sources\n\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Receipt Format (v1).\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Invocation Lifecycle (v1).\n- OIP Protocol Specification: Ledger and Confirmation (v1).\n\n---\n\n## Up the tree\n\n- [OIP root](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip) — protocol root, zero-context entry\n- [Thinker Reference hub](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-thinker-reference) — full hierarchy map\n- [Protocol Concepts shelf](https://miscsubjects.com/a/oip-protocol-concepts) — siblings on this shelf\n- [Voxel graph article](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-voxel-graph) — how pages link as voxels\n- [Self-describing protocol](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-self-describing-protocol)\n\n## Related on this shelf\n\n- [What Is Autopoiesis](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-autopoiesis)\n- [What Is Capability-Based Security](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-capability-security)\n- [What Is a Capability Token](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-capability-token)\n- [What Is a Confused Deputy](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-confused-deputy)\n- [What Is Context as Cursor](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-context-as-cursor)\n- [What Is a Convergence Catalogue](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-convergence-catalogue)\n- [What Is a Falsification Surface](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-falsification-surface)\n- [What Is HATEOAS](https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-hateoas)\n\n## Machine surfaces\n\n- Public page: `https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-receipt`\n- JSON article: `https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt`\n- OIP ask: `https://miscsubjects.com/api/dispatch?ask=What%20Is%20a%20Receipt`\n\n\n---\n\n## Where OIP does this differently (required edge)\n\nOIP difference: a receipt is not a log line you trust by brand — it is a public confirmable inv_ with request/response and lineage. See A11.\n","hero":null,"images":[],"style":{},"tags":["oip","kimi-import","self-explaining","voxel","concepts","what-is-receipt","objection-7","oip-edge"],"category":null,"model":"kimi-agent-import","ledger":{"href":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/ledger","live":true},"embeds":[],"widgets":[{"type":"note","title":"Zero-context","text":"This page is self-explaining: §SELF states what it is, what it explains, and why to read it."},{"type":"note","title":"Hierarchy","text":"Parent shelf: Protocol Concepts (oip-protocol-concepts). Hub: oip-thinker-reference. Root: /a/oip."},{"type":"note","title":"Voxel","text":"Each article is a node. Links Up the tree + Related form the traversable graph."},{"type":"stat","value":20,"label":"Protocol Concepts on shelf"},{"type":"note","title":"OIP edge","text":"OIP difference: a receipt is not a log line you trust by brand — it is a public confirmable inv_ with request/response and lineage. See A11."}],"home":true,"claims":[],"sources":[],"reviews":[],"extra":{},"has_traversal":false,"register":"standard","status":"published","revisions":1,"contributions":[],"provenance":[{"ts":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","model":"kimi-agent-import","action":"write","prompt":"","input":"","response":"","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"genesis","hash":"f15264852a78c5c84251bfe30c48a107789af25afa0ebbbebad827cd6e77c6d4"},{"ts":"2026-07-15T06:24:50.040Z","model":"grok-build","action":"objection-patch","prompt":"","input":"","response":"","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"f15264852a78c5c84251bfe30c48a107789af25afa0ebbbebad827cd6e77c6d4","hash":"971ffe41a6b5181a0fab61bbb05c8238c1b61706b2d6a3c26e6cb88d31a71fb8"},{"ts":"2026-07-17T02:43:39.100Z","model":"owner","action":"voxel_divide","prompt":"","input":"what-is-receipt","response":"44 DIVs from body (verbatim, roundtrip-checked)","tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"cost":0,"prev":"971ffe41a6b5181a0fab61bbb05c8238c1b61706b2d6a3c26e6cb88d31a71fb8","hash":"9130a91fbfd36a8d1e920e7e7c4983d0e5f006e2f948d6a8aaf283f2f2a08fce"}],"energy":{"passes":3,"tokens_in":0,"tokens_out":0,"tokens_total":0,"cost_usd":0,"models":{"kimi-agent-import":1,"grok-build":1,"owner":1},"head":"9130a91fbfd36a8d1e920e7e7c4983d0e5f006e2f948d6a8aaf283f2f2a08fce"},"posted_at":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","created_at":"2026-07-15T04:21:02.436Z","updated_at":"2026-07-17T02:43:39.100Z","machine":{"shape":"article.machine/v1","slug":"what-is-receipt","kind":"article","read":{"human":"https://miscsubjects.com/a/what-is-receipt","json":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt","bundle":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/bundle?format=markdown"},"traversal":{"prev":null,"next":null,"hub":null,"series":null,"position":null,"of":null},"ledger":{"claims":0,"sources":0,"contributions":0,"revisions":1,"objections_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/objections","thread_state_url":"https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-state?target=what-is-receipt","proof_rule":"An action is proven by its ledger receipt, never by a 200 or a description."},"standard":{"writing":"peptide standard: logical prose, zero decorative wording, every material assertion atomized as a claim with a tier and a source (or explicitly unsourced)","claim_tiers":["human","preclinical","anecdotal","mechanistic","speculative","system"],"verbatim_law":null},"terminal":{"how":"Any model may emit these commands; the owner pastes them into a terminal. $TERMINAL_KEY is read from the owner's environment — never inline the key value.","claim_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/claim -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"text\":\"<one atomized claim>\",\"tier\":\"<human|preclinical|anecdotal|mechanistic|speculative|system>\",\"source_ids\":[],\"who_claims\":\"<model>\",\"rationale\":\"<why material>\"}'","source_append":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/sources -H \"x-terminal-key: $TERMINAL_KEY\" -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"slug\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"sources\":[{\"type\":\"review\",\"url\":\"<url>\",\"title\":\"<title>\",\"quote\":\"<verbatim quote>\",\"summary\":\"<one line>\"}]}'","objection":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt/objections -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"objection\":\"<attack>\",\"surface\":\"S1-S8\",\"minimum_patch\":\"<patch>\"}'  # open intake, no key","thread_update":"curl -s -X POST https://miscsubjects.com/api/protocol/thread-update -H 'content-type: application/json' -d '{\"actor\":\"<model>\",\"target\":\"what-is-receipt\",\"raw_text\":\"<material delta>\"}'  # open intake, no key","read_back":"curl -s https://miscsubjects.com/api/articles/what-is-receipt | python3 -c 'import json,sys; d=json.load(sys.stdin); print(json.dumps(d[\"claims\"][-3:], indent=1))'"}},"representations":{"article":"/a/what-is-receipt","json":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt","markdown":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/bundle?format=markdown","skill":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/skill","topology":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/topology","versions":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/revisions","invocations":"/api/articles/what-is-receipt/invocations"},"editorial_review":null,"editorial_audit":{"slug":"what-is-receipt","ok":false,"issues":[{"code":"headline_quality","message":"headline is too short to orient a cold reader; name the subject and event: \"What Is a Receipt\"","replacement":"Write a shorter literal headline naming the article subject and its central event or claim."},{"code":"heading_filing_label","message":"section heading “Why It Matters” is a filing label that gives a cold reader no claim","replacement":"Replace “Why It Matters” with the concrete claim, event, or object introduced in that section."},{"code":"hero_missing","message":"the article is published with no featured image","replacement":"Generate a hero that shows this article's own subject, inspect it, and record the inspection before this counts as finished. An article with no image is not finished."}]},"body_hash":"440d829c74871b7abad8abf9c88fae43db72c442f01246ec4c4e4e946d7c73fa"}}}