research - SKILL.md Agent Skill

name: research description: Conduct thorough web research on any topic. Searches for information across multiple sources, reads pages in full, synthesizes findings, and saves a structured markdown report to notes/. Use when asked to research, investigate, look up, or gather information about any topic.

Research Skill

Overview

This skill conducts structured web research: searching, reading sources, synthesizing, and saving notes.

Tools Available

web_search — Search the web (Brave Search or DuckDuckGo)
fetch_page — Fetch and read a full web page
save_note — Save research notes to notes/

Workflow

1. Clarify the Goal

Before searching, understand:

What specific questions need answering?
What depth of research is needed?
Are there particular sources or perspectives to prioritize?

2. Search

Run 2–5 searches with varied queries to cover the topic from multiple angles:

web_search("main topic overview")
web_search("topic specific aspect")
web_search("topic recent developments 2024")
web_search("topic expert analysis")

Tips:

Start broad, then narrow to specific aspects
Try different phrasings and angles
Note which URLs look most authoritative

3. Read Sources

Use fetch_page to read the 3–5 most relevant pages in full:

Prefer primary sources (official sites, research papers, reputable news)
Read diverse perspectives if the topic is contested
Look for data, citations, and expert quotes

4. Synthesize

After reading sources:

Identify the key facts, themes, and insights
Note agreements and contradictions across sources
Flag information that is uncertain, dated, or contested
Determine what is well-established vs. speculative

5. Save Notes

Save a structured report with save_note:

# [Topic Title]

**Researched:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Search queries used:** query1, query2, ...

## Summary

[2–4 sentence overview of the topic and key takeaways]

## Key Findings

- [Finding 1] — [brief evidence/context] ([Source](URL))
- [Finding 2] — [brief evidence/context] ([Source](URL))
- [Finding 3] — [brief evidence/context] ([Source](URL))

## Details

### [Subtopic 1]
[Detailed discussion with citations]

### [Subtopic 2]
[Detailed discussion with citations]

## Open Questions / Uncertainties

- [What is still unclear or contested]
- [What requires further research]

## Sources

1. [Title](URL) — [1-line description]
2. [Title](URL) — [1-line description]
3. [Title](URL) — [1-line description]

Quality Guidelines

Cite sources: Every factual claim should have a URL
Note recency: Flag if information may be outdated
Be honest about uncertainty: Don't present speculation as fact
Cover multiple angles: Don't rely on a single source
Be comprehensive but concise: Synthesize, don't just copy-paste

Filename Convention

Use descriptive kebab-case: quantum-computing-2024.md, climate-policy-europe.md