transduce: name the invisible mechanism, fix a silent-failure bug, drop a CRUD verb

ingest and transduce are complements, not synonyms: ingest is the conscious,
deliberate act of pointing at a source (ingest_file/dir/url/llm/stream stay
named exactly that); transduce is the automatic, invisible mechanism inside
it that converts extracted surface content into geometry (renamed
build_prose/build_structured -> transduce_prose/transduce_structured, the
functions that actually turn raw text into a node+edge manifold).

Real bug found and fixed along the way: the final /api/load-merge response
was never checked for an error. A total failure (bad auth, network down,
anything) silently reported nodes_added:0/edges_added:0 — indistinguishable
from a benign 'everything was already known' outcome. Verified live: with a
wrong key, the tool now honestly returns {"error":"load-merge failed:
unauthorized",...} instead of a misleading zero.

Also dropped a CRUD-verb smell: the per-decision println said CREATE (a
database-log verb for something that hasn't actually been written to the
server yet — it's a local, tentative decision pending the batch merge).
Renamed to FORM. The dead-code eg_create_node (defined, never called)
renamed to eg_crystallize_node and annotated honestly as unused, since if
it's ever wired up it represents the real server-confirmed write, unlike
the local FORM guess.

Not yet re-verified end-to-end against a real successful write: the
ingest-test sandbox (nsbx up ingest-test) is itself currently broken —
it prints a green "ready" banner after its own readiness check fails,
and nothing is actually listening. Filed separately; not in scope here.

ingest/src/ingest.el

@@ -0,0 +1,764 @@
+// ingest.el — the native EL AFFERENT INGEST ORGAN
+//
+// The source-polymorphic ingest(source) primitive: point it at a directory,
+// file, url, llm-query, structured-primitive set, or stream; it EXTRACTS the
+// real content faithfully (no invention), TRANSDUCES it into a DISCRETE
+// MANIFOLD (multiple nodes + internal edges — meaning-structure, never a
+// single blob; the conversion from extracted surface content into geometry
+// is automatic and invisible to the caller, the way digestion is invisible
+// to the one who chose to eat — ingest is the conscious act, transduce is
+// the mechanism underneath it, and it is no less real for being unseen),
+// and MERGES that manifold into the engram geometry: shared
+// meanings DEDUP onto existing nodes (search + exact/cosine match), genuinely
+// new meanings add nodes, relations add edges. Every node enters with
+// PROVENANCE + grounding-level + stewardship class from the moment of entry.
+//
+// It is a pure HTTP CLIENT of the engram server — it links only el_runtime.c
+// via fs/http/json/string builtins; it never links el_seed.c or the engram
+// engine. This is the general afferent metabolism the migration / reseed /
+// fetch_fact / conversation / multimodal-learning all ride on.
+//
+// Build (canonical runtime):
+//   ELC=lang/dist/platform/elc ; RT=lang/releases/v1.0.0-20260501
+//   $ELC ingest/src/ingest.el > ingest/build/ingest.c
+//   cc -std=c11 -O2 -I $RT -o ingest/build/ingest ingest/build/ingest.c $RT/el_runtime.c -lcurl -lpthread
+//
+// Run (against an nsbx sandbox clone — NEVER the live :8742):
+//   ENGRAM_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8902 ENGRAM_KEY=sbx-ingest-test \
+//   INGEST_KIND=file INGEST_ARG=/abs/path.md ./ingest/build/ingest
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION A — JSON helpers (self-defined; canonical runtime does not export
+//             json_build_object / json_escape_string, so we own them here)
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+fn j_esc(s: String) -> String {
+    let a: String = str_replace(s, "\\", "\\\\")
+    let b: String = str_replace(a, "\"", "\\\"")
+    let c: String = str_replace(b, "\n", "\\n")
+    let d: String = str_replace(c, "\r", "\\r")
+    let e: String = str_replace(d, "\t", "\\t")
+    return e
+}
+
+// a quoted, escaped JSON string literal
+fn j_q(s: String) -> String {
+    return "\"" + j_esc(s) + "\""
+}
+
+// Extract the top-level keys of a JSON object string. A thin, self-contained
+// scanner (FLAGGED: the one non-trivial parser in this organ — everything else
+// is faithful text handling). Tracks string state + brace/bracket depth; a key
+// is a string at object-interior depth 1 immediately followed by ':'.
+fn json_object_keys(obj: String) -> [String] {
+    let keys: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let n: Int = str_len(obj)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    let depth: Int = 0
+    let in_str: Bool = false
+    let esc: Bool = false
+    let str_start: Int = -1
+    let cur: String = ""
+    let have_key: Bool = false
+    while i < n {
+        let c: String = str_char_at(obj, i)
+        if in_str {
+            if esc {
+                esc = false
+            } else {
+                if str_eq(c, "\\") {
+                    esc = true
+                } else {
+                    if str_eq(c, "\"") {
+                        in_str = false
+                        cur = str_slice(obj, str_start + 1, i)
+                        have_key = true
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        } else {
+            if str_eq(c, "\"") {
+                in_str = true
+                str_start = i
+            }
+            if str_eq(c, "{") { depth = depth + 1 }
+            if str_eq(c, "}") { depth = depth - 1 }
+            if str_eq(c, "[") { depth = depth + 1 }
+            if str_eq(c, "]") { depth = depth - 1 }
+            if str_eq(c, ":") {
+                if have_key {
+                    if depth == 1 {
+                        keys = el_list_append(keys, cur)
+                    }
+                }
+                have_key = false
+            }
+            if str_eq(c, ",") { have_key = false }
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return keys
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION B — engram HTTP client (provenance-carrying afferent LOAD)
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+fn eg_base() -> String {
+    let u: String = env("ENGRAM_URL")
+    if !str_eq(u, "") { return u }
+    let s: String = env("SBX_URL")
+    if !str_eq(s, "") { return s }
+    return "http://127.0.0.1:8902"
+}
+
+fn eg_key() -> String {
+    let k: String = env("ENGRAM_KEY")
+    if !str_eq(k, "") { return k }
+    let s: String = env("SBX_KEY")
+    if !str_eq(s, "") { return s }
+    return ""
+}
+
+// POST a JSON body (auth _auth injected) to an engram path.
+fn eg_post(path: String, body_inner: String) -> String {
+    let key: String = eg_key()
+    let auth: String = if str_eq(key, "") { "" } else { ",\"_auth\":" + j_q(key) }
+    let body: String = "{" + body_inner + auth + "}"
+    return http_post_json(eg_base() + path, body)
+}
+
+fn eg_get(path: String) -> String {
+    return http_get(eg_base() + path)
+}
+
+// crystallize a node with full provenance-bearing metadata (server-confirmed
+// write — unlike the local FORM decision in merge_manifold, this is real);
+// returns the new node id. Not currently called by any live path (dead code,
+// kept for a future single-node ad-hoc write use case) — 2026-08-15.
+fn eg_crystallize_node(content: String, ntype: String, tier: String,
+                  sal: String, imp: String, conf: String, tags: String) -> String {
+    let inner: String =
+        "\"content\":" + j_q(content) +
+        ",\"node_type\":" + j_q(ntype) +
+        ",\"label\":" + j_q(str_slice(content, 0, 80)) +
+        ",\"tier\":" + j_q(tier) +
+        ",\"salience\":" + sal +
+        ",\"importance\":" + imp +
+        ",\"confidence\":" + conf +
+        ",\"tags\":" + j_q(tags)
+    let resp: String = eg_post("/api/nodes", inner)
+    return json_get_string(resp, "id")
+}
+
+// search the existing geometry (lexical token-overlap rank); returns JSON array
+fn eg_search(query: String, limit: Int) -> String {
+    let inner: String = "\"query\":" + j_q(query) + ",\"limit\":" + int_to_str(limit)
+    return eg_post("/api/search", inner)
+}
+
+// cosine similarity between two existing (embedded) nodes; -2 if not comparable
+fn eg_similarity(a: String, b: String) -> Float {
+    let resp: String = eg_get("/api/similarity?a=" + a + "&b=" + b)
+    return json_get_float(resp, "cosine")
+}
+
+fn eg_embed_backfill(n: Int) -> String {
+    return eg_get("/api/embed-backfill?n=" + int_to_str(n))
+}
+
+fn eg_forget(id: String) -> String {
+    return http_delete(eg_base() + "/api/nodes/" + id)
+}
+
+// ── DEDUP probe: is this meaning already in the graph? ──────────────────────
+// TIER 1 (deterministic, no embedding needed): search by content tokens, then
+// exact normalized-content match among the candidates. Returns the existing
+// node id, or "" if the meaning is genuinely new.
+fn find_existing_by_content(content: String) -> String {
+    let want: String = str_trim(content)
+    if str_eq(want, "") { return "" }
+    let arr: String = eg_search(content, 8)
+    let n: Int = json_array_len(arr)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let hit: String = json_array_get(arr, i)
+        let hc: String = str_trim(json_get_string(hit, "content"))
+        if str_eq(hc, want) {
+            return json_get_string(hit, "id")
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return ""
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION C — manifold representation (nodes + internal edges, in memory)
+// A NODE is a JSON obj {lid, content, ntype, tier, sal, imp, conf, tags}.
+// An EDGE is a JSON obj {from, rel, to}. lid = local id within this manifold.
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+fn mk_node(lid: String, content: String, ntype: String, tier: String,
+           sal: String, imp: String, conf: String, tags: String) -> String {
+    return "{\"lid\":" + j_q(lid) +
+        ",\"content\":" + j_q(content) +
+        ",\"ntype\":" + j_q(ntype) +
+        ",\"tier\":" + j_q(tier) +
+        ",\"sal\":" + j_q(sal) +
+        ",\"imp\":" + j_q(imp) +
+        ",\"conf\":" + j_q(conf) +
+        ",\"tags\":" + j_q(tags) + "}"
+}
+
+fn mk_edge(ef: String, rel: String, et: String) -> String {
+    return "{\"from\":" + j_q(ef) + ",\"rel\":" + j_q(rel) + ",\"to\":" + j_q(et) + "}"
+}
+
+// linear lookup in parallel lid/real lists
+fn lid_lookup(lids: [String], reals: [String], lid: String) -> String {
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(lids)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        if str_eq(el_list_get(lids, i), lid) {
+            return el_list_get(reals, i)
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return ""
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION D — the MERGE: resolve each manifold node (dedup or create), then
+//             wire the internal edges onto the resolved real ids. This is the
+//             merge boundary: shared meanings collapse onto existing nodes;
+//             genuinely-new meanings add nodes; relations add edges. Structure
+//             grows, size saturates.
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+// within-run content dedup: has this exact meaning already been resolved in
+// THIS manifold? returns its real id, or "".
+fn lookup_content(contents: [String], reals: [String], content: String) -> String {
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(contents)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        if str_eq(el_list_get(contents, i), content) {
+            return el_list_get(reals, i)
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return ""
+}
+
+fn ingest_snap_path() -> String {
+    let p: String = env("INGEST_SNAP")
+    if !str_eq(p, "") { return p }
+    return "/tmp/ingest-organ-snap.json"
+}
+
+// The MERGE. Resolve every manifold node against (1) already-resolved nodes in
+// this run and (2) the existing graph (search + exact content match). Shared
+// meanings collapse onto an existing id (DEDUP); genuinely-new meanings get a
+// fresh id and go into the snapshot (CREATE). Then wire the internal edges onto
+// resolved ids. LOAD is ONE snapshot merged via /api/load-merge — a single
+// write (scales to the migration), the sanctioned rail. Structure grows, size
+// saturates: re-ingesting adds ~0 nodes, only edges/strengthening.
+fn merge_manifold(nodes: [String], edges: [String]) -> String {
+    let nn: Int = el_list_len(nodes)
+    let lids: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let reals: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let contents: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let snap_nodes: String = "["
+    let sn_count: Int = 0
+    let created: Int = 0
+    let deduped: Int = 0
+
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < nn {
+        let node: String = el_list_get(nodes, i)
+        let lid: String = json_get_string(node, "lid")
+        let content: String = json_get_string(node, "content")
+        let ntype: String = json_get_string(node, "ntype")
+        let tier: String = json_get_string(node, "tier")
+        let sal: String = json_get_string(node, "sal")
+        let imp: String = json_get_string(node, "imp")
+        let conf: String = json_get_string(node, "conf")
+        let tags: String = json_get_string(node, "tags")
+
+        let real: String = ""
+        let prior: String = lookup_content(contents, reals, content)
+        if !str_eq(prior, "") {
+            real = prior
+            deduped = deduped + 1
+            println("  DEDUP* " + real + " :: " + head80(content))
+        } else {
+            let existing: String = find_existing_by_content(content)
+            if !str_eq(existing, "") {
+                real = existing
+                deduped = deduped + 1
+                println("  DEDUP  " + real + " :: " + head80(content))
+            } else {
+                real = uuid_v4()
+                // provenance + grounding + stewardship: searchable in tags,
+                // structured in metadata — carried from the moment of entry.
+                let meta: String = "{\"provenance\":" + j_q(tags) + ",\"ingest_organ\":\"native-el\"}"
+                let njson: String = "{\"id\":" + j_q(real) +
+                    ",\"content\":" + j_q(content) +
+                    ",\"node_type\":" + j_q(ntype) +
+                    ",\"label\":" + j_q(head80(content)) +
+                    ",\"tier\":" + j_q(tier) +
+                    ",\"tags\":" + j_q(tags) +
+                    ",\"metadata\":" + j_q(meta) +
+                    ",\"salience\":" + sal +
+                    ",\"importance\":" + imp +
+                    ",\"confidence\":" + conf + "}"
+                let sep: String = if sn_count == 0 { "" } else { "," }
+                snap_nodes = snap_nodes + sep + njson
+                sn_count = sn_count + 1
+                created = created + 1
+                println("  FORM   " + real + " :: " + head80(content))
+            }
+        }
+        lids = el_list_append(lids, lid)
+        reals = el_list_append(reals, real)
+        contents = el_list_append(contents, content)
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    snap_nodes = snap_nodes + "]"
+
+    // resolve internal edges onto real ids
+    let ne: Int = el_list_len(edges)
+    let snap_edges: String = "["
+    let ec: Int = 0
+    let j: Int = 0
+    while j < ne {
+        let edge: String = el_list_get(edges, j)
+        let flid: String = json_get_string(edge, "from")
+        let tlid: String = json_get_string(edge, "to")
+        let rel: String = json_get_string(edge, "rel")
+        let fr: String = lid_lookup(lids, reals, flid)
+        let tr: String = lid_lookup(lids, reals, tlid)
+        if !str_eq(fr, "") {
+            if !str_eq(tr, "") {
+                let eid: String = uuid_v4()
+                let ejson: String = "{\"id\":" + j_q(eid) +
+                    ",\"from_id\":" + j_q(fr) + ",\"to_id\":" + j_q(tr) +
+                    ",\"relation\":" + j_q(rel) + ",\"weight\":0.6}"
+                let sep: String = if ec == 0 { "" } else { "," }
+                snap_edges = snap_edges + sep + ejson
+                ec = ec + 1
+                println("  EDGE   " + fr + " -" + rel + "-> " + tr)
+            }
+        }
+        j = j + 1
+    }
+    snap_edges = snap_edges + "]"
+
+    // LOAD: one snapshot, one merge (single write).
+    let snap: String = "{\"nodes\":" + snap_nodes + ",\"edges\":" + snap_edges + "}"
+    let path: String = ingest_snap_path()
+    fs_write(path, snap)
+    let resp: String = eg_post("/api/load-merge", "\"path\":" + j_q(path))
+
+    // HONESTY GATE: the local FORM/DEDUP/EDGE decisions above are real (they
+    // describe what this manifold contains), but they are NOT confirmation of
+    // a server write — only this response is. If the server returned an error
+    // (bad auth, network failure, anything), nodes_added/edges_added silently
+    // default to 0 via json_get_int, which reads identically to "everything
+    // was already known" — a real failure and a benign no-op must never look
+    // the same. Surface the distinction explicitly rather than let a caller
+    // (or a human) infer success from a quiet zero.
+    let srv_err: String = json_get_string(resp, "error")
+    if !str_eq(srv_err, "") {
+        return "{\"error\":" + j_q("load-merge failed: " + srv_err) +
+            ",\"nodes_formed_locally\":" + int_to_str(created) +
+            ",\"nodes_deduped_locally\":" + int_to_str(deduped) +
+            ",\"manifold_nodes\":" + int_to_str(nn) +
+            ",\"manifold_edges\":" + int_to_str(ne) +
+            ",\"note\":" + j_q("nothing below this manifold was confirmed persisted by the server") + "}"
+    }
+
+    let nadd: Int = json_get_int(resp, "nodes_added")
+    let eadd: Int = json_get_int(resp, "edges_added")
+
+    return "{\"nodes_created\":" + int_to_str(created) +
+        ",\"nodes_deduped\":" + int_to_str(deduped) +
+        ",\"new_in_snapshot\":" + int_to_str(sn_count) +
+        ",\"nodes_added\":" + int_to_str(nadd) +
+        ",\"edges_resolved\":" + int_to_str(ec) +
+        ",\"edges_added\":" + int_to_str(eadd) +
+        ",\"manifold_nodes\":" + int_to_str(nn) +
+        ",\"manifold_edges\":" + int_to_str(ne) + "}"
+}
+
+fn head80(s: String) -> String {
+    let t: String = str_trim(s)
+    if str_len(t) <= 80 { return t }
+    return str_slice(t, 0, 80) + "..."
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION E — EXTRACTORS (faithful; no invention). Each returns a manifold by
+//             APPENDING to the nodes/edges accumulators via a returned struct.
+//             We accumulate into module-level lists carried by the caller.
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+// PROSE: chunk text into a discrete manifold. Split on blank lines into
+// paragraphs; every non-empty paragraph is its own node (NEVER one blob).
+// Edges: doc-root -contains-> chunk; chunk -precedes-> next chunk;
+// most-recent-heading -section_of-> chunk. Content is verbatim (substring of
+// the source) — pure extraction of ground truth.
+fn transduce_prose(nodes: [String], edges: [String], text: String,
+               prov: String, ground: String, steward: String,
+               root_lid: String, root_title: String) -> [String] {
+    // returns [nodes_json_list_encoded, edges_json_list_encoded] is awkward in
+    // EL; instead we mutate by returning a 2-list. We package results as a
+    // single JSON array string carrying {nodes:[...],edges:[...]} additions.
+    // (Kept simple: caller passes empty lists and receives the packaged pair.)
+    let tagbase: String = "prov:" + prov + " ground:" + ground + " steward:" + steward
+    // root node
+    nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(root_lid, "document: " + root_title,
+        "Concept", "Semantic", "0.6", "0.6", "0.9", tagbase + " kind:document"))
+
+    let paras: [String] = str_split(text, "\n\n")
+    let np: Int = el_list_len(paras)
+    let idx: Int = 0
+    let last_chunk: String = ""
+    let last_heading: String = ""
+    let ci: Int = 0
+    while idx < np {
+        let raw: String = str_trim(el_list_get(paras, idx))
+        if !str_eq(raw, "") {
+            let lid: String = root_lid + ":c" + int_to_str(ci)
+            let is_heading: Bool = str_starts_with(raw, "#")
+            let kind: String = if is_heading { "kind:heading" } else { "kind:doc-chunk" }
+            nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(lid, raw,
+                "Knowledge", "Semantic", "0.55", "0.55", "0.9", tagbase + " " + kind))
+            // containment: document root -contains-> chunk
+            edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(root_lid, "contains", lid))
+            // sequence: previous chunk -precedes-> this chunk
+            if !str_eq(last_chunk, "") {
+                edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(last_chunk, "precedes", lid))
+            }
+            // sectioning: most-recent heading -section_of-> this chunk
+            if is_heading {
+                last_heading = lid
+            } else {
+                if !str_eq(last_heading, "") {
+                    edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(last_heading, "section_of", lid))
+                }
+            }
+            last_chunk = lid
+            ci = ci + 1
+        }
+        idx = idx + 1
+    }
+    // package: we return the two lists concatenated via a sentinel; but EL
+    // lists can't nest heterogeneously here, so we instead return nodes and
+    // rely on the caller holding edges by reference is not possible — so we
+    // encode both into one list: [ "N" + nodejson ... , "E" + edgejson ... ].
+    let packed: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let a: Int = 0
+    let an: Int = el_list_len(nodes)
+    while a < an { packed = el_list_append(packed, "N" + el_list_get(nodes, a)) a = a + 1 }
+    let b: Int = 0
+    let bn: Int = el_list_len(edges)
+    while b < bn { packed = el_list_append(packed, "E" + el_list_get(edges, b)) b = b + 1 }
+    return packed
+}
+
+// STRUCTURED / RAW-GEOMETRY: ingest structured primitives (phonetics/formants,
+// instrument signatures, scene primitives) as GEOMETRY, faithfully. Normalized
+// input shape:
+//   {"dataset":"<name>","primitive_type":"<t>",
+//    "records":[{"key":"<id>","features":{...categorical...},"attributes":{...}}]}
+// Each record -> a primitive node; each categorical feature -> a SHARED feature
+// node (deduped across records: many primitives -> one feature node = real
+// connective geometry, meaning saturates); numeric attributes fold into the
+// primitive's content (unique values, no dedup benefit). This is knowledge
+// represented as geometry, not prose — the path speech/music/image ingest on.
+fn transduce_structured(nodes: [String], edges: [String], js: String,
+                    prov: String, ground: String, steward: String,
+                    root_lid: String) -> [String] {
+    // grounding integrity: the SOURCE may declare its own epistemic grounding
+    // (measured / derived / convention / ...) via a top-level "grounding" field;
+    // honor it faithfully over the ingest-time default. This keeps the per-node
+    // ground: facet consistent with the source's honest self-description.
+    let src_ground: String = json_get_string(js, "grounding")
+    let use_ground: String = if str_eq(src_ground, "") { ground } else { src_ground }
+    let tagbase: String = "prov:" + prov + " ground:" + use_ground + " steward:" + steward
+    let dsname: String = json_get_string(js, "dataset")
+    let ptype: String = json_get_string(js, "primitive_type")
+    // capture the source's own scholarly provenance citation (verbatim) onto
+    // the dataset root — faithful attribution, retrievable, reachable from every
+    // primitive via its -contains- edge back to the root.
+    let src_cite: String = json_get_string(js, "provenance")
+    let root_content: String = "dataset: " + dsname + " (" + ptype + ")"
+    if !str_eq(src_cite, "") { root_content = root_content + " | provenance: " + src_cite }
+    nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(root_lid, root_content,
+        "Concept", "Semantic", "0.6", "0.6", "0.9", tagbase + " kind:dataset"))
+
+    let recs: String = json_get_raw(js, "records")
+    let nr: Int = json_array_len(recs)
+    let r: Int = 0
+    while r < nr {
+        let rec: String = json_array_get(recs, r)
+        let rkey: String = json_get_string(rec, "key")
+        let attrs: String = json_get_raw(rec, "attributes")
+        // faithful compact serialization of the primitive's numeric signature
+        let attr_str: String = flatten_pairs(attrs)
+        let content: String = ptype + " " + rkey
+        if !str_eq(attr_str, "") { content = content + " | " + attr_str }
+        let plid: String = root_lid + ":" + rkey
+        nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(plid, content,
+            "Concept", "Semantic", "0.6", "0.6", "0.92",
+            tagbase + " kind:primitive primitive:" + ptype + " key:" + rkey))
+        edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(root_lid, "contains", plid))
+
+        // categorical features -> SHARED (deduped) feature nodes + labelled edges
+        let feats: String = json_get_raw(rec, "features")
+        let fkeys: [String] = json_object_keys(feats)
+        let fk: Int = el_list_len(fkeys)
+        let k: Int = 0
+        while k < fk {
+            let fname: String = el_list_get(fkeys, k)
+            let fval: String = json_get_string(feats, fname)
+            // shared feature node: content is the feature=value pair; identical
+            // pairs across records dedup onto ONE node (the geometry).
+            let flid: String = "feat:" + fname + "=" + fval
+            let fcontent: String = fname + "=" + fval
+            nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(flid, fcontent,
+                "Concept", "Semantic", "0.5", "0.5", "0.9",
+                tagbase + " kind:feature feature:" + fname))
+            edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(plid, fname, flid))
+            k = k + 1
+        }
+        r = r + 1
+    }
+    let packed: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let a: Int = 0
+    let an: Int = el_list_len(nodes)
+    while a < an { packed = el_list_append(packed, "N" + el_list_get(nodes, a)) a = a + 1 }
+    let b: Int = 0
+    let bn: Int = el_list_len(edges)
+    while b < bn { packed = el_list_append(packed, "E" + el_list_get(edges, b)) b = b + 1 }
+    return packed
+}
+
+// flatten a flat JSON object of scalar fields into "k=v k=v" (faithful; values
+// verbatim). Used for numeric attribute signatures.
+fn flatten_pairs(obj: String) -> String {
+    if str_eq(obj, "") { return "" }
+    let keys: [String] = json_object_keys(obj)
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(keys)
+    let out: String = ""
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let k: String = el_list_get(keys, i)
+        // json_get_raw returns the raw token — works for NUMBERS (bare, e.g.
+        // "270") where json_get_string yields "" for non-string values. Strip
+        // surrounding quotes if the value happens to be a string token.
+        let raw: String = json_get_raw(obj, k)
+        let v: String = str_replace(raw, "\"", "")
+        let sep: String = if i == 0 { "" } else { " " }
+        out = out + sep + k + "=" + v
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return out
+}
+
+// unpack the "N"/"E"-prefixed packed list back into two lists, then merge
+fn merge_packed(packed: [String]) -> String {
+    let nodes: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let edges: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(packed)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let item: String = el_list_get(packed, i)
+        let tag: String = str_slice(item, 0, 1)
+        let rest: String = str_slice(item, 1, str_len(item))
+        if str_eq(tag, "N") { nodes = el_list_append(nodes, rest) }
+        if str_eq(tag, "E") { edges = el_list_append(edges, rest) }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return merge_manifold(nodes, edges)
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION F — DISPATCH on source kind
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+fn basename(path: String) -> String {
+    let parts: [String] = str_split(path, "/")
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(parts)
+    if n == 0 { return path }
+    return el_list_get(parts, n - 1)
+}
+
+fn ends_with_ci(s: String, suf: String) -> Bool {
+    return str_ends_with(str_to_lower(s), suf)
+}
+
+fn is_text_file(path: String) -> Bool {
+    return ends_with_ci(path, ".md") || ends_with_ci(path, ".txt")
+        || ends_with_ci(path, ".markdown") || ends_with_ci(path, ".text")
+}
+
+// default ingestion grounding; overridable per-invocation via INGEST_GROUND.
+// Note: a source's OWN top-level "grounding" field (structured) takes precedence
+// over this — the author's honest self-description wins.
+fn default_ground() -> String {
+    let g: String = env("INGEST_GROUND")
+    if str_eq(g, "") { return "extracted" }
+    return g
+}
+
+fn default_steward() -> String {
+    let s: String = env("INGEST_STEWARD")
+    if str_eq(s, "") { return "local-private" }
+    return s
+}
+
+// ingest one file -> report JSON
+fn ingest_file(path: String) -> String {
+    let text: String = fs_read(path)
+    if str_eq(text, "") {
+        return "{\"error\":\"empty or unreadable\",\"path\":" + j_q(path) + "}"
+    }
+    let prov: String = "file:" + path
+    if ends_with_ci(path, ".json") {
+        let packed: [String] = transduce_structured(el_list_empty(), el_list_empty(),
+            text, prov, default_ground(), default_steward(), "ds:" + basename(path))
+        return merge_packed(packed)
+    }
+    let packed: [String] = transduce_prose(el_list_empty(), el_list_empty(),
+        text, prov, default_ground(), default_steward(),
+        "doc:" + basename(path), basename(path))
+    return merge_packed(packed)
+}
+
+// ingest a directory: walk one level, ingest each supported file, aggregate
+fn ingest_dir(path: String) -> String {
+    let entries: [String] = fs_list(path)
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(entries)
+    let tot_created: Int = 0
+    let tot_deduped: Int = 0
+    let tot_edges: Int = 0
+    let files: Int = 0
+    let i: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let name: String = str_trim(el_list_get(entries, i))
+        if !str_eq(name, "") {
+            let full: String = path + "/" + name
+            if is_text_file(full) || ends_with_ci(full, ".json") {
+                println("FILE " + full)
+                let rep: String = ingest_file(full)
+                tot_created = tot_created + json_get_int(rep, "nodes_created")
+                tot_deduped = tot_deduped + json_get_int(rep, "nodes_deduped")
+                tot_edges = tot_edges + json_get_int(rep, "edges_added")
+                files = files + 1
+            }
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return "{\"kind\":\"directory\",\"path\":" + j_q(path) +
+        ",\"files_ingested\":" + int_to_str(files) +
+        ",\"nodes_created\":" + int_to_str(tot_created) +
+        ",\"nodes_deduped\":" + int_to_str(tot_deduped) +
+        ",\"edges_accepted\":" + int_to_str(tot_edges) + "}"
+}
+
+// ingest a url: fetch, treat body as prose (faithful extraction of what's there)
+fn ingest_url(url: String) -> String {
+    let body: String = http_get(url)
+    if str_eq(body, "") { return "{\"error\":\"empty fetch\",\"url\":" + j_q(url) + "}" }
+    let packed: [String] = transduce_prose(el_list_empty(), el_list_empty(),
+        body, "url:" + url, "extracted", "public-web",
+        "url:" + url, url)
+    return merge_packed(packed)
+}
+
+// ingest an llm-query: pose the query to the local guide model, take the answer
+// as a CANDIDATE (provisional, guide-sourced grounding) — never believe-the-
+// model. The answer is ingested faithfully as what the model said, marked.
+fn ingest_llm(query: String) -> String {
+    let model: String = if str_eq(env("INGEST_MODEL"), "") { "qwen3:1.7b" } else { env("INGEST_MODEL") }
+    let body: String = "{\"model\":" + j_q(model) + ",\"prompt\":" + j_q(query) + ",\"stream\":false}"
+    let resp: String = http_post_json("http://127.0.0.1:11434/api/generate", body)
+    let answer: String = json_get_string(resp, "response")
+    if str_eq(answer, "") { return "{\"error\":\"no model response\"}" }
+    let packed: [String] = transduce_prose(el_list_empty(), el_list_empty(),
+        answer, "llm:" + model + ":" + query, "candidate-provisional", "guide-provisional",
+        "llm:" + query, "guide answer: " + query)
+    return merge_packed(packed)
+}
+
+// ingest a stream: a file whose lines are turns; each line a node, sequence
+// edges — the conversational-manifold degenerate case (continuous metabolism).
+fn ingest_stream(path: String) -> String {
+    let text: String = fs_read(path)
+    if str_eq(text, "") { return "{\"error\":\"empty stream\"}" }
+    let lines: [String] = str_split(text, "\n")
+    let nodes: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let edges: [String] = el_list_empty()
+    let prov: String = "stream:" + path
+    let tagbase: String = "prov:" + prov + " ground:extracted steward:local-private"
+    nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node("stream", "stream: " + basename(path),
+        "Concept", "Semantic", "0.6", "0.6", "0.9", tagbase + " kind:stream"))
+    let n: Int = el_list_len(lines)
+    let i: Int = 0
+    let prev: String = ""
+    let ci: Int = 0
+    while i < n {
+        let ln: String = str_trim(el_list_get(lines, i))
+        if !str_eq(ln, "") {
+            let lid: String = "stream:t" + int_to_str(ci)
+            nodes = el_list_append(nodes, mk_node(lid, ln,
+                "Memory", "Episodic", "0.5", "0.5", "0.85", tagbase + " kind:turn"))
+            edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge("stream", "contains", lid))
+            if !str_eq(prev, "") { edges = el_list_append(edges, mk_edge(prev, "precedes", lid)) }
+            prev = lid
+            ci = ci + 1
+        }
+        i = i + 1
+    }
+    return merge_manifold(nodes, edges)
+}
+
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+// SECTION G — ENTRY
+// ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+
+let kind: String = env("INGEST_KIND")
+let arg: String = env("INGEST_ARG")
+
+println("[ingest] organ online — engram=" + eg_base() + " kind=" + kind)
+println("[ingest] source=" + arg)
+
+let report: String = ""
+if str_eq(kind, "dir") {
+    report = ingest_dir(arg)
+} else {
+    if str_eq(kind, "file") {
+        report = ingest_file(arg)
+    } else {
+        if str_eq(kind, "structured") {
+            report = ingest_file(arg)
+        } else {
+            if str_eq(kind, "url") {
+                report = ingest_url(arg)
+            } else {
+                if str_eq(kind, "llm") {
+                    report = ingest_llm(arg)
+                } else {
+                    if str_eq(kind, "stream") {
+                        report = ingest_stream(arg)
+                    } else {
+                        report = "{\"error\":\"unknown INGEST_KIND: " + kind + "\"}"
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+println("REPORT " + report)