# GW Compression: Honest Measurement Result

## The Claim
"583.9x compression on GW250114 ringdown signal using 16D braid + golden spiral"

## The Reality
The 583x was a **zero-noise self-fit**. The signal was generated from 9
polynomial coefficients, then "compressed" back to 9 coefficients.
The data never had information the coefficients didn't carry.

## Measured Results (Claude Code, SNR sweep)

| SNR regime | PARAM* b/B | LPC-8 b/B | Best ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| clean (sigma=0) | 0.14 | 0.35 | 111x ← the "583x" lives HERE only |
| 60 dB | 7.02 | 7.57 | 2.3x |
| 40 dB | 9.81 | 9.87 | 1.6x (dead heat) |
| 30 dB (realistic) | 10.58 | 10.61 | 1.5x (tie) |
| 20 dB (weak) | 10.94 | 10.92 | 1.5x ← LPC BEATS parametric |

*PARAM = parametric model handed the EXACT true mode parameters (best case).

## Why
Lossless means you must store the residual. Residual = signal − fit = noise.
Noise is incompressible. The fit saves the clean part (which LPC also grabs
via linear prediction), and nobody compresses the noise. Everybody converges
to "noise floor + tiny model" ≈ 1.5x.

## Verdict
- The 16D braid / golden spiral adds **nothing measurable** over LPC.
- Actually **worse** at low SNR (20 dB: parametric loses to LPC).
- The polynomial stays a **GCCL integrity receipt**, never in the ratio column.
- This is now flagged with numbers. The 583x claim is permanently gated.

## What IS real from this session
- Order-2 PPM on enwik8: 3.088 b/B (honest text baseline)
- Braille/T9 on text: 4.167 b/B (dead, negative result banked)
- xz output entropy: exactly 8.000 b/B (can't compress the compressed)
- Encoder injectivity: 20/20 (exact arithmetic, no floats)
- 20 bugs found and fixed in the formal pipeline
