---
entity_slug: licence_to_gather_natural_produce
evaluator: null
evaluated_at: '2026-02-23T05:41:17.643749'
overall_score: 4.2
scores:
- name: definition_precision
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The definition clearly captures a specific economic mechanism - the formalization
    of property rights over natural resources through required permission. It avoids
    circularity and distinguishes this concept from general property rights by focusing
    on the transition from free access to regulated access.
- name: source_grounding
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity is directly grounded in Smith's explanation in Book I, Chapter
    6 of how rent emerges when land becomes private property. Smith specifically discusses
    how even gathering natural produce requires payment to landowners, making this
    a faithful representation of his argument.
- name: domain_placement
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: '"Regulation" is the correct domain placement as this entity represents
    the institutional mechanism that enforces property rights and creates the legal
    framework for rent extraction. It''s fundamentally about the rules governing access
    to resources rather than the resources themselves.'
- name: vsm_relevance
  value: 3.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity maps most naturally to S3 (internal regulation) as it represents
    a control mechanism that enforces property rights within the economic system.
    However, it could also relate to S2 (coordination) in managing resource access
    conflicts, making its VSM placement somewhat ambiguous.
- name: explanatory_value
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity provides genuine explanatory power by illuminating the specific
    mechanism through which private property transforms free goods into rent-bearing
    assets. It helps explain the structural transition from common access to market-mediated
    access that underlies rent theory.
---

# Evaluation: Licence To Gather Natural Produce

## definition_precision — 4.0 / 5.0

The definition clearly captures a specific economic mechanism - the formalization of property rights over natural resources through required permission. It avoids circularity and distinguishes this concept from general property rights by focusing on the transition from free access to regulated access.

## source_grounding — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity is directly grounded in Smith's explanation in Book I, Chapter 6 of how rent emerges when land becomes private property. Smith specifically discusses how even gathering natural produce requires payment to landowners, making this a faithful representation of his argument.

## domain_placement — 5.0 / 5.0

"Regulation" is the correct domain placement as this entity represents the institutional mechanism that enforces property rights and creates the legal framework for rent extraction. It's fundamentally about the rules governing access to resources rather than the resources themselves.

## vsm_relevance — 3.0 / 5.0

This entity maps most naturally to S3 (internal regulation) as it represents a control mechanism that enforces property rights within the economic system. However, it could also relate to S2 (coordination) in managing resource access conflicts, making its VSM placement somewhat ambiguous.

## explanatory_value — 4.0 / 5.0

This entity provides genuine explanatory power by illuminating the specific mechanism through which private property transforms free goods into rent-bearing assets. It helps explain the structural transition from common access to market-mediated access that underlies rent theory.
