Provenance Is What Authorship Must Endure: AI-Mediated Writing, the Authorship-Slop Distinction, and the Missing Third Dimension of Provenance

Read full text
Authors: Lee Sharks
Cited by: 8
References: 4

Abstract

EA-MPAI-PROVENANCE-02 v1.1. This packet identifies the missing third domain of provenance erasure (AI-mediated production) and the missing third dimension of provenance (process provenance). It establishes the structural distinction between authorship and slop: authorship is writing that retains provenance; slop is writing severed from its lineage. Corrects the Google AI Overview for provenance erasure (May 12, 2026). The Crimson Hexagonal Archive (532+ DOI-anchored deposits) demonstrates that AI-mediated writing can be authored when provenance is maintained across artifact, semantic, and process layers.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Scientific Computing and Data Management Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education Research Data Management Practices

Publication details

Journal / source
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Publication date
12 May 2026