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def

sigma_cost_to_agent_1

definition
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module
IndisputableMonolith.GameTheory.MechanismDesignFromSigma
domain
GameTheory
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plain-language theorem explainer

sigma_cost_to_agent_1(v₀) defines the σ-cost imposed on agent 1 when the item is allocated to agent 1 as exactly the valuation v₀ of the displaced agent 0. Mechanism designers working on VCG auctions in the Recognition Science setting cite this when equating payments to externality costs. The definition is a direct one-line equality that supplies the missing term for the case where agent 1 wins.

Claim. Let $c_1(v_0)$ denote the σ-cost of allocating the item to agent 1 when agent 0 reports valuation $v_0$. Then $c_1(v_0) := v_0$.

background

The module builds a two-agent single-item VCG auction. Each agent reports a bid; the higher bidder wins and pays the lower bid (the externality imposed on the loser). The σ-cost is the recognition cost of that allocation, drawn from the J-cost construction in upstream results such as ObserverForcing.cost (cost of a recognition event) and MultiplicativeRecognizerL4.cost (derived cost on positive ratios). The module replaces earlier trivial stubs and works over the full bid space ℝ.

proof idea

Direct definition that sets sigma_cost_to_agent_1 v₀ to v₀. No lemmas or tactics are applied; the equality is the entire body.

why it matters

The definition supplies the second clause of vcg_payment_eq_sigma_cost, which equates VCG payments to σ-costs. It is referenced inside the VCGCert structure that certifies DSIC for both agents and truthful bidding as a Nash equilibrium. In the Recognition Science framework it completes the σ-conservation property for the VCG mechanism on Track E10.

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