Specificity Shields Against Competition

Instructions in prose-heavy files must name specific constructs to resist topic competition. Vague instructions surrounded by prose on the same topic degrade severely, while named instructions maintain compliance.

Antipatterns

• Writing a generic directive in a file with extensive explanatory prose. "Use the formatter" in a file with paragraphs about formatting conventions gets overwhelmed by the surrounding content.
• Adding context paragraphs around a constraint without naming constructs in the constraint itself. The prose competes with the vague instruction and wins.
• Keeping instructions abstract in files that also contain documentation. Prose-heavy files demand more specific instructions, not less.

Pass / Fail

Pass

Code formatting uses `ruff format` with the config
in `pyproject.toml`. NEVER run `black` or `autopep8`.

Fail

We use a consistent code formatting approach across
the project. Follow the standard formatting rules.
Always format your code before committing.

Fix

In files with substantial prose, naming specific constructs is even more critical. Vague instructions in prose-heavy files get hit twice: once by being vague, again by being vulnerable to competition. Priority: name constructs first, then reduce surrounding prose.

Limitations

Combines specificity measurement with prose density. May flag files where prose is intentionally kept for human readers — the diagnostic applies to model compliance, not human readability.