γ₁ STRATUM HELIX · 10 LAYERS · SAME ANCHOR ALL DEPTHS · γ₁ = 14.134725141734693

⚠ THE GC PAUSE PROBLEM

Python and Go runtimes use garbage collection — a background process that periodically halts execution to reclaim memory. At S3–S5 (document, ROM state, template harness), the design calls for millisecond-reliable timing. GC pauses corrupt this: a 2ms document compile becomes 40ms when the GC fires mid-operation. Over 78 ROM candidates × 6 flows, this compounds into seconds of invisible jitter.

Rust's ownership model eliminates runtime GC entirely. Memory is freed deterministically at scope exit — no surprise pauses, no 40ms spikes, no heisenbugs that only appear under load.