diff --git a/playground/samples/DSL.newt b/playground/samples/DSL.newt
index 234d48d..d455bf3 100644
--- a/playground/samples/DSL.newt
+++ b/playground/samples/DSL.newt
@@ -20,15 +20,15 @@ Z * m = Z
 
 infixr 4 _::_
 data Vec : U → Nat → U where
-  Nil : {a} → Vec a Z
-  _::_ : {a k} → a → Vec a k → Vec a (S k)
+  Nil : ∀ a. Vec a Z
+  _::_ : ∀ a k. a → Vec a k → Vec a (S k)
 
 infixl 5 _++_
-_++_ : {a n m} → Vec a n → Vec a m → Vec a (n + m)
+_++_ : ∀ a n m. Vec a n → Vec a m → Vec a (n + m)
 Nil ++ ys = ys
 (x :: xs) ++ ys = x :: (xs ++ ys)
 
-map : {a b n} → (a → b) → Vec a n → Vec b n
+map : ∀ a b n. (a → b) → Vec a n → Vec b n
 map f Nil = Nil
 map f (x :: xs) = f x :: map f xs
 
@@ -57,12 +57,12 @@ data Unit : U where
   MkUnit : Unit
 
 data Either : U -> U -> U where
-  Left : {A B} → A → Either A B
-  Right : {A B} → B → Either A B
+  Left : ∀ a b. a → Either a b
+  Right :  ∀ a b. b → Either a b
 
 infixr 4 _,_
 data Both : U → U → U where
-  _,_ : {A B} → A → B → Both A B
+  _,_ :  ∀ a b. a → b → Both a b
 
 typ : E → U
 typ Zero = Empty
@@ -85,11 +85,11 @@ BothBoolBool = typ four
 ex1 : BothBoolBool
 ex1 = (false, true)
 
-enumAdd : {a b m n} → Vec a m → Vec b n → Vec (Either a b) (m + n)
+enumAdd : ∀ a b m n. Vec a m → Vec b n → Vec (Either a b) (m + n)
 enumAdd xs ys = map Left xs ++ map Right ys
 
 -- for this I followed the shape of _*_, the lecture was slightly different
-enumMul : {a b m n} → Vec a m → Vec b n → Vec (Both a b) (m * n)
+enumMul : ∀ a b m n. Vec a m → Vec b n → Vec (Both a b) (m * n)
 enumMul Nil ys = Nil
 enumMul (x :: xs) ys = map (_,_ x) ys ++ enumMul xs ys
 
@@ -111,8 +111,8 @@ test4 = enumerate four
 -- for now, I'll define ≡ to check
 
 infixl 2 _≡_
-data _≡_ : {A} → A → A → U where
-  Refl : {A} {a : A} → a ≡ a
+data _≡_ : ∀ a. a → a → U where
+  Refl : ∀ a. {x : a} → x ≡ x
 
 test2' : test2 ≡ false :: true :: Nil
 test2' = Refl
diff --git a/playground/samples/Lists.newt b/playground/samples/Lists.newt
index 4d352a8..db4b91c 100644
--- a/playground/samples/Lists.newt
+++ b/playground/samples/Lists.newt
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ reverse-++-distrib (x :: xs) ys =
 -- same thing, but using `replace` in the proof
 reverse-++-distrib' : ∀ A. (xs ys : List A) -> reverse (xs ++ ys) ≡ reverse ys ++ reverse xs
 reverse-++-distrib' Nil ys = sym (++-identity (reverse ys))
-reverse-++-distrib' {A} (x :: xs) ys =
+reverse-++-distrib' {a} (x :: xs) ys =
   replace (\ z => (reverse (xs ++ ys) ++ (x :: Nil)) ≡ z)
           (sym (++-associative (reverse ys) (reverse xs) (x :: Nil)))
           (replace (\ z => (reverse (xs ++ ys)) ++ (x :: Nil) ≡ z ++ (x :: Nil)) (reverse-++-distrib' xs ys) Refl)
diff --git a/playground/samples/Tree.newt b/playground/samples/Tree.newt
index 4104e22..5059d15 100644
--- a/playground/samples/Tree.newt
+++ b/playground/samples/Tree.newt
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ module Tree
 -- adapted from Conor McBride's 2-3 tree example
 -- youtube video: https://youtu.be/v2yXrOkzt5w?t=3013
 
-
 data Nat : U where
   Z : Nat
   S : Nat -> Nat
@@ -16,8 +15,8 @@ data Void : U where
 infixl 4 _+_
 
 data _+_ : U -> U -> U where
-  inl : {A B} -> A -> A + B
-  inr : {A B} -> B -> A + B
+  inl : ∀ a b. a -> a + b
+  inr : ∀ a b. b -> a + b
 
 infix 4 _<=_
 
@@ -47,14 +46,14 @@ _ <<= Top = Unit
 _ <<= _ = Void
 
 data Intv : Bnd -> Bnd -> U where
-  intv : {l u} (x : Nat) (lx : l <<= N x) (xu : N x <<= u) -> Intv l u
+  intv : ∀ l u. (x : Nat) (lx : l <<= N x) (xu : N x <<= u) -> Intv l u
 
 data T23 : Bnd -> Bnd -> Nat -> U where
-  leaf : {l u} (lu : l <<= u) -> T23 l u Z
-  node2 : {l u h} (x : _)
+  leaf : ∀ l u. (lu : l <<= u) -> T23 l u Z
+  node2 : ∀ l u h. (x : _)
     (tlx : T23 l (N x) h) (txu : T23 (N x) u h) ->
     T23 l u (S h)
-  node3 : {l u h} (x y : _)
+  node3 : ∀ l u h. (x y : _)
     (tlx : T23 l (N x) h) (txy : T23 (N x) (N y) h) (tyu : T23 (N y) u h) ->
     T23 l u (S h)
 
@@ -66,12 +65,12 @@ data Sg : (A : U) -> (A -> U) -> U where
   _,_ : {A : U} {B : A -> U} -> (a : A) -> B a -> Sg A B
 
 _*_ : U -> U -> U
-A * B = Sg A (\ _ => B)
+a * b = Sg a (\ _ => b)
 
 TooBig : Bnd -> Bnd -> Nat -> U
 TooBig l u h = Sg Nat (\ x => T23 l (N x) h * T23 (N x) u h)
 
-insert : {l u h} -> Intv l u -> T23 l u h -> TooBig l u h + T23 l u h
+insert : ∀ l u h. Intv l u -> T23 l u h -> TooBig l u h + T23 l u h
 insert (intv x lx xu) (leaf lu) = inl (x , (leaf lx , leaf xu))
 insert (intv x lx xu) (node2 y tly tyu) = case cmp x y of
   -- u := N y is not solved at this time
diff --git a/playground/samples/TypeClass.newt b/playground/samples/TypeClass.newt
index 442149e..5ebebd6 100644
--- a/playground/samples/TypeClass.newt
+++ b/playground/samples/TypeClass.newt
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ class Monad (m : U → U) where
   pure : ∀ a. a → m a
 
 infixl 1 _>>=_ _>>_
-_>>=_ : {0 m} {{Monad m}} {0 a b} -> (m a) -> (a -> m b) -> m b
+_>>=_ : ∀ m. {{Monad m}} {0 a b : _} -> (m a) -> (a -> m b) -> m b
 ma >>= amb = bind ma amb
 
 _>>_ : ∀ m a b. {{Monad m}} -> m a -> m b -> m b
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ data Either : U -> U -> U where
   Left : ∀ A B. A -> Either A B
   Right : ∀ A B. B -> Either A B
 
-instance {a} -> Monad (Either a) where
+instance ∀ a. Monad (Either a) where
   bind (Left a) amb = Left a
   bind (Right b) amb = amb b
 
diff --git a/scripts/aoc25 b/scripts/aoc25
index 42fe35e..7293507 100755
--- a/scripts/aoc25
+++ b/scripts/aoc25
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ for fn in  aoc2025/Day*.newt; do
     if ! diff -q tmp/${bn}.out ${fn}.golden; then
       echo "Output mismatch for $fn"
       failed=$((failed + 1))
-      if [ $1 = "--fix" ]; then
+      if [ "$1" = "--fix" ]; then
         cp tmp/${bn}.out ${fn}.golden
       fi
     fi
diff --git a/src/Lib/Parser.newt b/src/Lib/Parser.newt
index d515ee3..b37aa18 100644
--- a/src/Lib/Parser.newt
+++ b/src/Lib/Parser.newt
@@ -314,7 +314,7 @@ lamExpr = do
 caseAlt : Parser RCaseAlt
 caseAlt = do
   pure MkUnit
-  pat <- typeExpr
+  pat <- term
   t <- optional (keyword "=>" >> term)
   pure $ MkAlt pat t
 
@@ -364,6 +364,7 @@ doCaseLet = do
   keyword "="
   sc <- typeExpr
   alts <- startBlock $ manySame $ symbol "|" *> caseAlt
+  -- REVIEW why am I collecting the rest here?
   bodyFC <- getPos
   body <- RDo <$> getPos <*> someSame doStmt
   pure $ DoExpr fc (RCase fc sc Nothing (MkAlt pat (Just body) :: alts))
@@ -457,9 +458,9 @@ ibind = do
   symbol "{"
   quant <- quantity
   names <- (some (addPos varname))
-  ty <- optional (symbol ":" *> typeExpr)
+  ty <- symbol ":" *> typeExpr
   symbol "}"
-  pure $ map (makeBind quant ty) names
+  pure $ map (makeBind quant (Just ty)) names
   where
     makeBind : Quant → Maybe Raw → FC × String → BindInfo × Raw
     makeBind quant ty (pos, name) = (BI pos name Implicit quant, fromMaybe (RImplicit pos) ty)
diff --git a/src/Prelude.newt b/src/Prelude.newt
index 5b12249..396eaad 100644
--- a/src/Prelude.newt
+++ b/src/Prelude.newt
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ class Functor (m : U → U) where
   map : ∀ a b. (a → b) → m a → m b
 
 infixr 4 _<$>_ _<$_
-_<$>_ : ∀ f. {{Functor f}} {0 a b} → (a → b) → f a → f b
+_<$>_ : ∀ f. {{Functor f}} {0 a b : _} → (a → b) → f a → f b
 f <$> ma = map f ma
 
 _<$_ : ∀ f a b. {{Functor f}} → b → f a → f b
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@ instance Applicative Maybe where
 
 infixr 2 _<|>_
 class Alternative (m : U → U) where
-  _<|>_ : {0 a} → m a → m a → m a
+  _<|>_ : ∀ a. m a → m a → m a
 
 instance Alternative Maybe where
   Nothing <|> x = x
@@ -368,12 +368,12 @@ instance Monad List where
 
 
 -- This is traverse, but we haven't defined Traversable yet
-mapA : ∀ m. {{Applicative m}} {0 a b} → (a → m b) → List a → m (List b)
+mapA : ∀ m. {{Applicative m}} {0 a b : _} → (a → m b) → List a → m (List b)
 mapA f Nil = return Nil
 mapA f (x :: xs) = return _::_ <*> f x <*> mapA f xs
 
 
-mapM : ∀ m. {{Monad m}} {0 a b} → (a → m b) → List a → m (List b)
+mapM : ∀ m. {{Monad m}} {0 a b : _} → (a → m b) → List a → m (List b)
 mapM f Nil = pure Nil
 mapM f (x :: xs) = do
   b <- f x
@@ -433,6 +433,9 @@ pfunc pack : List Char → String := `(cs) => {
 }
 `
 
+-- FIXME this no longer works with numeric tags
+-- we could take the best of both worlds and have a debug flag to add extra information
+-- but also we could derive Show...
 pfunc debugStr uses (natToInt listToArray) : ∀ a. a → String := `(_, obj) => {
   const go = (obj) => {
     if (obj === null) return "_"
diff --git a/tests/Tree.newt b/tests/Tree.newt
index 859b8d3..c99f9cc 100644
--- a/tests/Tree.newt
+++ b/tests/Tree.newt
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ module Tree
 -- adapted from Conor McBride's 2-3 tree example
 -- youtube video: https://youtu.be/v2yXrOkzt5w?t=3013
 
-
 data Nat : U where
   Z : Nat
   S : Nat -> Nat
@@ -16,8 +15,8 @@ data Void : U where
 infixl 4 _+_
 
 data _+_ : U -> U -> U where
-  inl : {A B} -> A -> A + B
-  inr : {A B} -> B -> A + B
+  inl : ∀ a b. a -> a + b
+  inr : ∀ a b. b -> a + b
 
 infix 4 _<=_
 
@@ -47,14 +46,14 @@ _ <<= Top = Unit
 _ <<= _ = Void
 
 data Intv : Bnd -> Bnd -> U where
-  intv : {l u} (x : Nat) (lx : l <<= N x) (xu : N x <<= u) -> Intv l u
+  intv : ∀ l u. (x : Nat) (lx : l <<= N x) (xu : N x <<= u) -> Intv l u
 
 data T23 : Bnd -> Bnd -> Nat -> U where
-  leaf : {l u} (lu : l <<= u) -> T23 l u Z
-  node2 : {l u h} (x : _)
+  leaf : ∀ l u. (lu : l <<= u) -> T23 l u Z
+  node2 : ∀ l u h. (x : _)
     (tlx : T23 l (N x) h) (txu : T23 (N x) u h) ->
     T23 l u (S h)
-  node3 : {l u h} (x y : _)
+  node3 : ∀ l u h. (x y : _)
     (tlx : T23 l (N x) h) (txy : T23 (N x) (N y) h) (tyu : T23 (N y) u h) ->
     T23 l u (S h)
 
@@ -71,7 +70,7 @@ a * b = Sg a (\ _ => b)
 TooBig : Bnd -> Bnd -> Nat -> U
 TooBig l u h = Sg Nat (\ x => T23 l (N x) h * T23 (N x) u h)
 
-insert : {l u h} -> Intv l u -> T23 l u h -> TooBig l u h + T23 l u h
+insert : ∀ l u h. Intv l u -> T23 l u h -> TooBig l u h + T23 l u h
 insert (intv x lx xu) (leaf lu) = inl (x , (leaf lx , leaf xu))
 insert (intv x lx xu) (node2 y tly tyu) = case cmp x y of
   -- u := N y is not solved at this time