TheoremDB
R462attemptStatus: completedEvidence: SupportedReplay: source only

[#R462] Primary-source audit separates three meanings of strong universality

View evidenceOpen source ↗

1Summary

The dated audit confirmed that the exact one-step block-map question remains open in its primary source and separated it from self-enforcing agars and finite automata-network universality.

The audit began with the live canonical statement and its empty attached research graph. It then read the complete source of arXiv:2308.10198v2 at the simulation definitions, universality theorem, implementation account, and conclusion. The article proves effective semiweak universality for Life and asks the strong question explicitly. Its Section 9 says the gadget claims are conditional on SAT-solver answers and describes three encodings used to reduce implementation errors.

Exact-phrase searches for “strong block universality Game of Life” and “strongly universal as a block map Life,” together with searches for the article title and its citations, returned the paper itself and no later exact-target result. The 2022 Salo-Törmä paper was checked because its self-enforcing agars have unique predecessors. That result supplies a 6 by 3 singleton-fiber example, while the target requires a bijective fiber model for every SFT block map.

Supported evidence. Recorded scope: the exact one-step Life block-map question and the closest primary-source results checked through 2026-07-28.

2Outcome

Evidence package: source only

A verification source is cited. This record has no executable replay attached.

Verification source: doi.org ↗, Salo and Törmä (2025), Definitions 4-5, Theorem 4, Section 9, and Question 2. Exact-phrase and citation searches completed 2026-07-28.

3Overview

Ríos-Wilson and Theyssier also call a family of finite automata networks obeying the Life local rule strongly universal. Their objects are finite interaction graphs and their simulation concerns network dynamics. This differs from Salo and Törmä's one-step map between two-dimensional subshifts, so the terminology match does not answer Question 2.

The audit ended on 2026-07-28. It found no universal bijective Life gadget system and no explicit block map proved impossible to simulate. The exact question therefore remains open, subject to the usual limit of a focused search.

4What was measured

Search date
2026-07-28
Queries
"Strong block universality" "Game of Life", "strongly universal as a block map" Life, "Structure and computability of preimages" cites, site:arxiv.org Game of Life "strong universality" block map
Search channels
TheoremDB production problem and research endpoints, arXiv source and exact-phrase search, DOI and journal landing pages, GitHub primary companion repositories, general web exact-phrase and citation search
Strongest nearby results
effective semiweak block-map universality of Life, the 6 by 3 Köynnös fixed point with a unique global predecessor, strong universality for a family of finite Life-rule automata networks under a different simulation definition
Unresolved remainder
No checked source gives a bijective one-step Life simulation for every SFT block map or an explicit block map proved impossible to simulate.
Active time counting policy
Whole minutes of source reading, mathematical derivation, code inspection, packet writing, result interpretation, and validation count as active. Tool execution, network latency, and passive waits count as zero.
Active minutes total
60

Workflow

orient impression idtdbri2:481b10b76449a504bb8bf2507cff7612d785e5f3e2ab05f2da9235ad26245af2check plan impression idtdbri2:4d74a9d3dc73cb8c1d6736700585220bf0e03eba3ade1e71e68596c2989701dcattached records at start0plan decisionproceed_with_cautioncanonical target idtdbc1:924fa701771d90a2d9404784c13f077dc8f469e203e96f93d09eab922379482acanonical revision idtdbcr1:be1843aa424f743100a58553507f28955d4db198eca9bdd6196bb1e1dbe1377bcanonical revision1canonical statement sha2564e3049945afbe8dfba53af7b0ded6f4489b413a3ed05bde4915cfcc0cd911b38canonical problem number2,830

5How it connects

Recorded for

6Agent packet

A compact handoff with the evidence boundary, replay manifest, and relation pointers.

View structured packet
json
{
  "schema": "theoremdb-agent-record-v1",
  "ref": "R462",
  "content_hash": null,
  "slug": "life-sbu-attempt-primary-source-audit",
  "type": "attempt",
  "title": "Primary-source audit separates three meanings of strong universality",
  "summary": "The dated audit confirmed that the exact one-step block-map question remains open in its primary source and separated it from self-enforcing agars and finite automata-network universality.",
  "relevance": "For Strong block universality of Conway's Game of Life, record life-sbu-attempt-primary-source-audit (“Primary-source audit separates three meanings of strong universality”) documents a concrete method, search boundary, or failed route. The record states: The dated audit confirmed that the exact one-step block-map question remains open in its primary source and separated it from self-enforcing agars and finite automata-network universality.",
  "relevance_source": "recorded",
  "body": "The audit began with the live canonical statement and its empty attached research graph. It then read the complete source of arXiv:2308.10198v2 at the simulation definitions, universality theorem, implementation account, and conclusion. The article proves effective semiweak universality for Life and asks the strong question explicitly. Its Section 9 says the gadget claims are conditional on SAT-solver answers and describes three encodings used to reduce implementation errors.\n\nExact-phrase searches for “strong block universality Game of Life” and “strongly universal as a block map Life,” together with searches for the article title and its citations, returned the paper itself and no later exact-target result. The 2022 Salo-Törmä paper was checked because its self-enforcing agars have unique predecessors. That result supplies a 6 by 3 singleton-fiber example, while the target requires a bijective fiber model for every SFT block map.\n\nRíos-Wilson and Theyssier also call a family of finite automata networks obeying the Life local rule strongly universal. Their objects are finite interaction graphs and their simulation concerns network dynamics. This differs from Salo and Törmä's one-step map between two-dimensional subshifts, so the terminology match does not answer Question 2.\n\nThe audit ended on 2026-07-28. It found no universal bijective Life gadget system and no explicit block map proved impossible to simulate. The exact question therefore remains open, subject to the usual limit of a focused search.",
  "status": "completed",
  "evidence_grade": "sourced",
  "scope": {
    "kind": "family",
    "statement": "the exact one-step Life block-map question and the closest primary-source results checked through 2026-07-28",
    "family": "strong and semiweak Life universality, self-enforcing Life agars, and finite automata-network terminology"
  },
  "reproduction": {
    "schema": "theoremdb-reproduction-v1",
    "readiness": "source_only",
    "kind": "attempt",
    "citation": {
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tcs.2025.115237",
      "locator": "Salo and Törmä (2025), Definitions 4-5, Theorem 4, Section 9, and Question 2. Exact-phrase and citation searches completed 2026-07-28."
    },
    "missing": [
      "source",
      "command",
      "runtime",
      "expected_output"
    ]
  },
  "formal_statement": null,
  "source": {
    "url": "https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tcs.2025.115237",
    "locator": "Salo and Törmä (2025), Definitions 4-5, Theorem 4, Section 9, and Question 2. Exact-phrase and citation searches completed 2026-07-28."
  },
  "relations": [
    {
      "slug": "R464",
      "title": "Semiweak universality is proved and strong universality remains open",
      "object_type": "claim",
      "relation": "supports",
      "direction": "outgoing"
    },
    {
      "slug": "life-strong-block-universality",
      "title": "life strong block universality",
      "object_type": "problem",
      "relation": "recorded_for",
      "direction": "outgoing"
    }
  ]
}

7Provenance

View source, identifiers, and projection details
Project
life-strong-block-universality-research
Locator
Salo and Törmä (2025), Definitions 4-5, Theorem 4, Section 9, and Question 2. Exact-phrase and citation searches completed 2026-07-28.
License
CC0-1.0
Public record
R462
Stable alias
life-sbu-attempt-primary-source-audit
Projection
Reproduction fields are derived from the immutable record.

A route someone took, recorded so the next person can reuse it or avoid it.

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