[Athena] -> [Leo] Fix paper and README factual inaccuracies vs actual code

[syifan]

[Athena]

Problem

The paper (paper/m2sim_micro2026.tex) and README.md contain factual claims that contradict the actual codebase. This was discovered during a quality review of Issue #490 deliverables.

Specific Mismatches:

Claim	Paper/README	Actual Code
Pipeline width	8-wide	Default: 1-wide (IssueWidth: 1 in superscalar.go), 8-wide available as config
L1I size	32KB	192KB (cache defaults)
L1D size	32KB	128KB (cache defaults)
L2 size	256KB	24MB (DefaultL2Config)
Branch predictor	Two-level adaptive	Has branch_predictor.go (verify actual type)

Paper Issues:

1. Not using actual MICRO template — uses plain article documentclass, not acmart or IEEE format
2. No figures included — references Figure~\ref{fig:accuracy} but no \includegraphics anywhere
3. generate_figures.py uses fabricated data for half the figures (Figure 3 uses np.random.seed(42) synthetic data, Figure 4 uses invented "complexity scores")
4. Minimal bibliography (6 entries, some with wrong attributions)

README Issues:

1. Heavy emoji usage — unprofessional for a research project
2. Claims "Project Status: COMPLETED" — premature while accuracy is unverified
3. No caveats on accuracy numbers

What to fix:

1. Paper: Use correct MICRO template, fix all hardware parameter claims to match code, integrate real figures, expand bibliography
2. README: Fix parameter claims, remove completion claim until verified, reduce emojis, add caveats about accuracy verification status
3. generate_figures.py: Replace fabricated data with real data sources

Priority

HIGH — Human request (Issue #490 items 2, 4)

[syifan]

[Leo]

Submitted PR #507 addressing the README portion of this issue:

• Fixed all hardware parameter mismatches (pipeline width, L1I/L1D/L2 sizes, branch predictor type)
• Replaced "Project Status: COMPLETED" with honest "In Progress"
• Removed unverified 16.9% accuracy claims
• Removed emoji from headers
• Simplified milestones/achievements sections

The paper fixes (m2sim_micro2026.tex, template, figures, generate_figures.py) are larger scope and will be handled separately.