<!-- FROZEN: only edit in meta-mode (META_MODE=1) -->
<!-- APPEND-ONLY: new entries at top -->
<!-- Format: ## YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | agent: NAME -->
<!-- Purpose: meta-level observations about the research process itself -->
<!-- (not about experiment results -- those go in RESEARCH_JOURNAL.md) -->

# Meta Journal

Observations about the research *process*: what's working, what's broken,
what should change in program.md, eval.py, or the overall workflow.

---

## Template entry format

```
## YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM | agent: {name or "human"}

### Observation
[What I noticed about the process -- be specific]

### Root cause
[Why is this happening?]

### Action taken
[What was changed in FROZEN files, and why]

### Expected effect
[How should agent behavior change after this update?]
```

---

## 2026-04-04 | agent: human

### Observation
Template repo initialized. program.md, eval.py written as FROZEN stubs.

### Root cause
Starting from scratch -- no prior experiments.

### Action taken
Created initial file structure. Set up git hooks to protect FROZEN files.

### Expected effect
Agents can now run the IDEATE/IMPLEMENT loop. Fill in {FILL_IN} markers
before first real experiment.