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engine: add ROUND builtin with round-half-to-even semantics - #1015

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round-builtin
Aug 10, 2026
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engine: add ROUND builtin with round-half-to-even semantics#1015
bpowers merged 4 commits into
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round-builtin

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@bpowers bpowers commented Aug 10, 2026

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Adds a ROUND(x) builtin that rounds to the nearest integer with exact .5 ties going to the even neighbor -- Python round() / IEEE roundTiesToEven -- wired through every layer of the engine plus the wasm backend.

Why ties-to-even

The XMILE v1.0 spec defines no ROUND function (zero occurrences in the in-repo spec), so the semantics are Simlin's to choose. Ties-to-even matches Python and is statistically unbiased over uniformly distributed ties. Two external-tool caveats are documented at the BuiltinFn::Round variant rather than left implicit:

  • Stella does define ROUND (tie rule unspecified in isee's docs), so a Stella-authored .stmx calling ROUND now imports and simulates instead of failing with UnknownBuiltin; whether Stella agrees at exact ties is unverified.
  • Vensim defines no ROUND at all, so the MDL writer records an ExportWarning when an equation calls it (the transpose operator's exact contract): there is no Vensim-expressible round-half-to-even, so the call is emitted as-is and disclosed instead of degrading silently.

Implementation

  • VM: a single f64::round_ties_even in apply().
  • wasm backend: the single native f64.nearest instruction, which the wasm spec defines as IEEE roundToIntegralTiesToEven -- the two backends agree bit for bit by construction, signed-zero ties included.
  • Wired through the parser arity table, all four AST stages, lowering, codegen, array-operand materialization, run-invariance classification (pure), LTM polarity (non-decreasing step function, like INT), units checking/inference (units-preserving), the patch reprinter, the pretty printer, and the MCP function-reference docs. Constant folding deliberately leaves ROUND unfolded, matching the existing stance for ABS/INT/MIN/MAX.

Tests

One shared case table (test_common::ROUND_TIES_TO_EVEN_CASES, bit-pattern comparison contract) drives all three backend tests -- the end-to-end parse->compile->VM pipeline, the VM apply() unit test, and the wasm parity test (which executes the emitted blob under the wasm interpreter) -- so the backends cannot drift apart on rows one test carries and another omits. The exact .5 ties are the load-bearing rows: f64::round (ties away from zero) agrees on every non-tie input, so a suite without them would pass with the wrong function. Further coverage: elementwise arrays, ROUND under a reducer (temp materialization path), NaN/infinity propagation, case-insensitivity, arity errors, units preservation, MDL export warnings, and the patch print-reparse round trip.

Review findings folded in

/code-review ran on the branch; all six findings were verified and fixed:

  • corrected a doc claim this branch introduced (Vensim's INTEGER truncates toward zero -- confirmed against the checked-in Vensim DSS ground truth -- rather than flooring; the skill table now states the real INTEGER/INT divergence, and the underlying import-fidelity gap was found to be already tracked as engine: INT/MOD negative-number semantics diverge from Vensim (blocks tests/rounding); MOD uses rem_euclid not XMILE floored modulus #610, where the importer-specific framing was added as a comment)
  • the MDL ROUND export warning described above
  • the Stella citation on the variant comment
  • consolidated three drifting per-backend test tables into the one shared table
  • listed the new test module in the engine CLAUDE.md
  • deleted the dead project_io.proto BuiltinId enum (referenced by no message and no code, with a comment claiming bytecode serialization that never happens) and regenerated bindings; an unreferenced enum contributes nothing to any serialized instance, so wire compatibility is unaffected

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https://claude.ai/code/session_01XjDuCGQqFp59hGWk2vf77G

bpowers added 3 commits August 9, 2026 19:30
ROUND(x) rounds to the nearest integer, sending exact .5 ties to the
even neighbor -- Python round() / IEEE roundTiesToEven -- rather than
the more common round-half-away-from-zero. The XMILE v1.0 spec defines
no ROUND function (zero occurrences in docs/reference/xmile-v1.0.html),
so this is a Simlin extension and ties-to-even is a deliberate choice:
it is statistically unbiased over uniformly distributed ties and matches
what Python users expect.

The VM implements it as f64::round_ties_even and the wasm backend as the
single native f64.nearest instruction, which the wasm spec defines as
IEEE roundToIntegralTiesToEven -- so the two backends agree bit for bit
by construction, signed-zero ties included. It is wired through every
layer a unary scalar builtin touches (parser arity table, the four AST
stages, lowering, codegen, invariance classification, LTM polarity as a
non-decreasing step function like INT, units checking and inference as
units-preserving, the patch reprinter, and the pretty printer), always
in the same group as INT.

Constant folding deliberately leaves ROUND applications unfolded,
matching the existing stance for ABS/INT/MIN/MAX (fold.rs: not worth a
special case until measurement says otherwise).

Also corrects the MCP instruction docs' description of INT, which
claimed truncation; the engine implements INT as floor, and the two
differ for negative arguments.
Six findings from review, each verified before fixing:

- The MCP Vensim-syntax skill's INTEGER row claimed floor semantics;
  the in-repo Vensim DSS ground truth (test/test-models/tests/rounding/
  output.tab: INTEGER(-9.9) = -9) and vensim.com's fn_integer page show
  INTEGER truncates toward zero. The row now states the real divergence
  from Simlin's floor-based INT instead of papering over it (the
  underlying import-semantics gap is tracked separately).

- The MDL writer silently exported round(x) as ROUND(x), which Vensim
  does not define. It now records an ExportWarning (the transpose
  operator's exact contract): there is no Vensim-expressible
  round-half-to-even, so the call is emitted as-is and disclosed.

- The BuiltinFn::Round comment framed ROUND as an unconstrained Simlin
  choice; Stella does define ROUND (tie rule unspecified), so the
  comment now cites that and marks the tie-behavior divergence risk as
  unverified rather than nonexistent.

- The three ROUND case tables (e2e, VM apply, wasm parity) were
  hand-maintained copies and the wasm one had already drifted. They now
  drive one shared table (test_common::ROUND_TIES_TO_EVEN_CASES) with a
  single comparison contract, so the backends cannot drift apart. The
  e2e test skips only the negative-zero INPUT row, which the equation
  language cannot spell (unary minus lowers to 0 - x).

- The engine CLAUDE.md Tests section now lists round_builtin_tests.rs.

- The dead project_io.proto BuiltinId enum (referenced by no message and
  no code, with a comment claiming bytecode serialization that never
  happens) was deleted and bindings regenerated; an unreferenced enum
  contributes nothing to any serialized instance, so wire compatibility
  is unaffected.
The mdl CLAUDE.md enumerates every construct the ExportWarning channel
flags; the ROUND builtin's warning joins that list.
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codecov Bot commented Aug 10, 2026

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Codecov Report

❌ Patch coverage is 95.94595% with 3 lines in your changes missing coverage. Please review.
✅ Project coverage is 92.21%. Comparing base (201025e) to head (fcf8a80).
⚠️ Report is 1 commits behind head on main.

Files with missing lines Patch % Lines
src/simlin-engine/src/ast/expr3.rs 75.00% 1 Missing ⚠️
src/simlin-engine/src/compiler/pretty.rs 0.00% 1 Missing ⚠️
src/simlin-engine/src/mdl/writer.rs 95.65% 1 Missing ⚠️
Additional details and impacted files
@@            Coverage Diff             @@
##             main    #1015      +/-   ##
==========================================
+ Coverage   92.18%   92.21%   +0.03%     
==========================================
  Files         247      247              
  Lines      158229   158247      +18     
==========================================
+ Hits       145857   145932      +75     
+ Misses      12372    12315      -57     

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Comment thread src/simlin-engine/src/builtins.rs Outdated
Comment on lines +87 to +89
// Whether Stella agrees at exact .5 ties is UNVERIFIED; if it rounds ties
// away from zero (the Excel/C convention), an imported model that hits an
// exact tie diverges by 1 there. Vensim defines no ROUND at all, and the

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P1 Badge Verify Stella tie semantics before accepting its ROUND

For Stella-authored .stmx models, this changes ROUND from a visible UnknownBuiltin failure into ties-to-even execution while explicitly admitting that Stella's tie behavior is unverified. If Stella rounds exact halves differently, imported experiments silently diverge by one at every such value; verify the behavior against an official reference or ground-truth output and implement those semantics, or continue rejecting Stella ROUND until it is verified.

AGENTS.md reference: AGENTS.md:L103-L109

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Comment thread src/simlin-engine/src/mdl/writer.rs Outdated
Comment on lines +1382 to +1384
/// page), so the catch-all rename emits a `ROUND(...)` call Vensim rejects.
/// There is no Vensim-expressible equivalent of round-half-to-even, so the
/// writer emits the call as-is and says so rather than degrade silently --

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P2 Badge Lower ROUND to valid Vensim expressions

For any model using ROUND and exported through the plain project_to_mdl API, this deliberately emits a call that Vensim rejects while that API discards the warning, leaving an MDL file that cannot run. The premise that half-to-even is not Vensim-expressible is false for finite values: it can be composed from IF THEN ELSE, INTEGER, and MODULO by branching on sign, the half-integer case, and integer parity. Lower the call to those supported primitives (or synthesize an equivalent helper macro) instead of emitting invalid MDL.

AGENTS.md reference: AGENTS.md:L103-L109

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Comment on lines +7 to +9
//! ROUND is a Simlin extension: the XMILE v1.0 spec defines no ROUND function
//! (verified against `docs/reference/xmile-v1.0.html`, which contains zero
//! occurrences of the word). Simlin defines it as Python's `round()` /

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P2 Badge Correct the XMILE source check

The cited in-repo specification does not contain “zero occurrences” of round: docs/reference/xmile-v1.0.html uses the word in its precision description, including rounding to hundredths and halves. The spec may still omit a ROUND function, but this asserted verification does not establish that premise; check the function catalog and cite the exact supporting section instead of recording a demonstrably false source result.

AGENTS.md reference: AGENTS.md:L103-L109

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@claude

claude Bot commented Aug 10, 2026

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Code Review

Thorough review of #1015 — end-to-end ROUND builtin. The change is well-scoped, all AST/lowering/codegen/units/LTM/patch/pretty/MDL layers are updated in lockstep, and the shared ROUND_TIES_TO_EVEN_CASES table with bit-pattern comparison pinning the three backends is the right shape.

I checked several potential concern areas and they held up:

  • The -0.0 E2E skip is correct — input == 0.0 && input.is_sign_negative() matches only -0.0, not +0.0, and the format!(\"{:?}\", -0.5) -> \"round(-0.5)\" path folds through Op2(Sub, 0.0, 0.5) to the exact -0.5 literal, so the non--0.0 signed-zero row is genuinely exercised.
  • The MDL writer's expr0_contains_round correctly compares against the lowercase \"round\" (parser stores builtin names lowercased), and the catch-all rename underbar_to_space(func).to_uppercase() emits ROUND(x) as-is.
  • f64::round_ties_even and wasm f64.nearest agree at every case in the table including signed-zero (both preserve input sign per IEEE 754 §5.9 Case 3).
  • The deleted project_io.proto BuiltinId enum is genuinely unreferenced by any message or code, so removing it is wire-compatible.

Finding: [P3] test_builtin_polarity_monotone_increasing covers Int but not the newly-added Round

src/simlin-engine/src/ltm/tests.rs:1637-1644 enumerates monotone builtins and pins each one's positive-polarity propagation. This PR adds BuiltinFn::Round(inner) to the same match arm as BuiltinFn::Int(inner) in ltm/polarity.rs:297-298, but the test's monotone_fns vec still only covers 6 of the 7 arms. Per CLAUDE.md's CRITICAL note ("A test that pins one arm of an N-way decision reads exactly like a test that pins the decision. Derive the rows from the enumeration ... or state in the test which arms it does not cover"), Round should either be added as a row here (one line: (\"Round\", BuiltinFn::Round(x_expr()))) or the test's docstring should state where it is covered instead. This is test hygiene, not a functional defect — the polarity code is correct — but it means an accidental future move of Round out of the monotone arm would go undetected by this test.

Overall verdict: correct

No functional bugs found. Existing tests should pass, backends are pinned bit-for-bit, and the Vensim/Stella semantic caveats are appropriately documented and warned about at MDL export.

Three substantive points from the PR #1015 reviews:

- The round_builtin_tests header claimed the XMILE spec contains zero
  occurrences of the word 'round'. False: the check had been run with a
  grep that silently skips the spec's non-UTF8 HTML as binary. A proper
  search finds 39 occurrences -- all prose (display precision, 'rounded
  rectangle', 'background') -- and no ROUND function form in the builtin
  catalog, so the substantive claim stands and the comment now cites the
  verification that actually supports it.

- The MDL writer's rationale overstated 'no Vensim-expressible
  round-half-to-even'. It is arithmetically composable from IF THEN
  ELSE / INTEGER / MODULO for finite values; the writer still refuses to
  lower it, now for the stated real reasons: a lowering duplicates the
  argument expression (wrong outright for stochastic arguments, which
  would be re-drawn per copy) and rests on Vensim edge semantics that
  are unverified or known to diverge (INTEGER/MODULO, GH #610), so a
  subtly-wrong silent lowering is strictly worse than a loud warning.

- The monotone-polarity enumeration test covered six of the seven arms
  of polarity.rs's non-decreasing builtin group; Round is now a row, so
  moving it out of that arm reds the test.

On the Stella tie-semantics question: Python's ties-to-even is the
product requirement regardless of Stella's (undocumented) tie rule;
matching Stella is explicitly a non-goal, and the BuiltinFn::Round
comment now records that as a decision rather than an open caveat.
@bpowers

bpowers commented Aug 10, 2026

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Addressed the review feedback in fcf8a80:

  • XMILE citation (codex P2 on round_builtin_tests.rs): confirmed — the "zero occurrences" claim was false, an artifact of a grep that silently skipped the spec's non-UTF8 HTML as binary. A proper search finds 39 occurrences of the word, all prose (display precision, "rounded rectangle", "background"), and no ROUND( function form in the builtin catalog — so the substantive claim (XMILE defines no ROUND builtin) stands, and the comment now cites the verification that actually supports it.

  • Vensim lowering (codex P2 on writer.rs): agreed the "not Vensim-expressible" premise was overstated and fixed the stated rationale. The writer still deliberately emits ROUND(...) + ExportWarning rather than lowering: an IF THEN ELSE/INTEGER/MODULO composition duplicates the argument expression (wrong outright for stochastic arguments, which would be re-drawn per copy) and rests on Vensim edge semantics this repo has either not verified or knows to diverge (INTEGER truncates where our INT floors, MODULO disagrees with our MOD — engine: INT/MOD negative-number semantics diverge from Vensim (blocks tests/rounding); MOD uses rem_euclid not XMILE floored modulus #610 — and Vensim's = behavior at an exact .5 comparison is unverified). A subtly-wrong silent lowering is strictly worse than a loud warning; this matches the transpose operator's existing contract.

  • Stella tie semantics (codex P1): intentionally not changing behavior. Python's ties-to-even is the product requirement here regardless of Stella's (undocumented) tie rule — matching Stella is explicitly a non-goal right now. The BuiltinFn::Round comment now records this as a decision rather than an open caveat, and notes that if Stella fidelity ever becomes a goal, its tie rule should be verified against ground-truth output first.

  • Polarity enumeration gap (claude P3): fixed — Round is now a row in test_builtin_polarity_monotone_increasing, so all seven arms of the non-decreasing builtin group are pinned and moving Round out of that arm reds the test.

@codex review

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Reviewed the changes end-to-end. The ROUND builtin is threaded correctly through every AST layer, compiler pass, analysis, and backend, with bit-exact backend parity guaranteed by construction (f64::round_ties_even in the VM and wasm's single f64.nearest instruction, which the wasm spec defines as IEEE roundTiesToEven). Test coverage is comprehensive: the shared ROUND_TIES_TO_EVEN_CASES table pins the exact .5 ties (including signed-zero rows compared by bit pattern) across the VM apply, wasm parity, and full pipeline tests, so the backends cannot drift. Design decisions (no constant folding, no MDL lowering to IF/INTEGER/MODULO, warned MDL export) are clearly documented and match this repo's stance for similar builtins. No blocking findings. Overall correctness verdict: correct.

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Ramp(Box<Expr>, Box<Expr>, Option<Box<Expr>>),
// ROUND(x): nearest integer, exact .5 ties to the EVEN neighbor
// (Python round() / IEEE roundTiesToEven). The XMILE v1.0 spec defines no
// ROUND builtin (its function catalog stops at INT, which footnote 7

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P2 Badge Describe the XMILE catalog accurately

The corrected citation in round_builtin_tests.rs now says only that the catalog contains no ROUND entry, but this separate comment still claims the catalog “stops at INT.” Section 3.5.1 continues after INT with LN, LOG10, MAX, and other functions, so replace this with the narrower verified claim that the catalog lists INT but not ROUND; otherwise the code retains another false external-spec premise.

AGENTS.md reference: AGENTS.md:L103-L109

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Comment on lines +809 to +810
/// `ROUND(...)` as-is (there is no Vensim-expressible round-half-to-even to
/// degrade to), and the writer's job is to say so.

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P2 Badge Remove the stale Vensim impossibility claim

Fresh evidence in the current tree is that writer.rs now explicitly acknowledges round-half-to-even is arithmetically composable for finite values and rejects lowering because it duplicates stochastic arguments and depends on unsafe edge semantics. This test comment still states the rebutted premise that no Vensim-expressible form exists, so it should describe that deliberate safety tradeoff instead of preserving a false external-tool claim.

AGENTS.md reference: AGENTS.md:L103-L109

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@bpowers
bpowers merged commit 632445d into main Aug 10, 2026
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bpowers deleted the round-builtin branch August 10, 2026 04:56
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