Cairo · StarkNet Lab 🧪⚡

A public research lab for understanding Cairo and StarkNet from first principles.

This repository is not a tutorial. It is a collection of questions, experiments, and conclusions that emerged while learning how StarkNet actually works — especially from a security and auditing perspective.

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🧠 Philosophy

Most bugs come from wrong assumptions, not bad syntax.

This repo exists to:

• challenge assumptions
• test behaviors with minimal code
• document what actually happens
• separate execution guarantees from logic correctness

Each folder contains small, focused experiments answering one concrete question.

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📂 Repository Structure

cairo-starknet-lab/
├── DEFI/
├── Notes/
├── Security/
├── Starknet_Contracts/

DEFI Create Readme.md 2 days ago Notes Starknet-Notes 2 minutes ago Security Create Readme.md now Starknet_Contracts

Each top-level folder represents a risk domain — areas where misunderstandings can lead to bugs, failed invariants, or flawed audits.

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🔍 What You’ll Find Inside

• Minimal Cairo programs (often intentionally small)
• Failing examples with explanations
• Short READMEs answering:
  • What was the question?
  • What was tested?
  • What was learned?
• Security-oriented observations where relevant

No boilerplate. No copy-paste notes.

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🧪 Folder Overview

execution-and-proofs

How StarkNet executes programs and what STARK proofs do and do not guarantee.

Proofs verify execution — not business logic.

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types-and-values

How values behave in Cairo: mutability, reassignment, and type-level assumptions.

Mutability ≠ ownership.

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collections-and-dynamic-data

Arrays, structs, tuples — and the hidden complexity inside composite data.

Most protocol state lives here. So do most mistakes.

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ownership-and-memory

Ownership rules, move semantics, and Cairo’s memory safety model.

Many “logic bugs” start as ownership misunderstandings.

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functions-traits-generics

Abstractions, traits, and generics — and how they affect reasoning and audits.

Abstraction hides complexity. This folder exposes it.

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testing-and-failure-modes

How Cairo programs fail: panic, Result, test behavior, and execution halting.

Auditing is about failure paths, not happy paths.

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🧠 How to Read This Repo

This repo is not linear. You don’t read it top to bottom.

Instead:

• Pick a folder
• Open a subfolder
• Read the question
• Look at the experiment
• Read the conclusion

That’s the intended flow.

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🧩 Why This Exists (Security Perspective)

STARK proofs change who verifies execution — not what is correct.

Logical correctness, invariants, and assumptions:

• still require human reasoning
• still require audits
• still fail silently if misunderstood

This repo is training ground for that reasoning.

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“If an assumption feels obvious, it probably deserves an experiment.”