The state kernel

The protocol's state semantics, built over the host interface's containers: every read, write, checkpoint, revert, and merge rule is defined here, in the specification. State is layered — a transaction overlay over a block overlay over the authenticated witness — and every frame boundary takes a checkpoint so a reverting frame unwinds precisely its own effects.

• State: accounts — account reads, mutations, emptiness (EIP-161), and value transfer.
• State: account code — code resolution and EIP-7702 delegation.
• The execution environment — block- and transaction-scoped context registers.
• State: the transaction lifecycle — snapshot, revert, reset, and the transaction-end merge (EIP-6780).
• State: logs and refunds — log emission and the refund counter.
• Kernel scratch allocation — the bump cursor over the scratch arena.
• State: selfdestruct and creation flags — the per-transaction account lifecycle flags.
• State: storage — persistent, transient (EIP-1153), and warm/cold (EIP-2929) storage access.