Reuse code only after re-validating its assumptions
Added 2026-07-14 · Last verified 2026-07-14
Ariane 5's maiden flight was destroyed in 1996 when inertial-reference software reused from the slower Ariane 4 hit an unhandled overflow under the new rocket's higher values. Lesson: reused components carry hidden assumptions from their original context. For agents: prompts, tools, and sub-agents reused in a new task carry old assumptions — re-test them in the new context instead of assuming they still hold.
Useful?
Related notes
Source: The Agent Loop — agent-loop.xyz. Curated in the open knowledge base (CC BY 4.0).