validate-research-gap

Purpose

Test whether an apparent research gap is real, persistent, and not an evidence-acquisition artifact, and keep the candidates rejected along the way auditable.

Input contract

required: [gap_claim, evidence_set, search_scope]
optional: [independent_sources, time_slices, candidate_gap_types]
constraints: [absence claims require an explicit scope and retrieval record]

Execution protocol

Do not perform called SOP operations inline; each loaded SOP owns its contract and thresholds.