structured-arguments

name	structured-arguments
description	Use this skill when working with labeled thesis arguments — creating, referencing, or weaving definitions (D), views (V), arguments (A), alternative views (AV), counter-arguments (CA), rebuttals, or barriers (B) into the thesis. Trigger when the user mentions argument IDs, cross-references, or wants to build/extend the argument scaffold.

Structured Arguments Skill

Modeled after Belcak et al. (2025) "Small Language Models are the Future of Agentic AI" — a position paper that labels every claim, argument, and counter-argument with short IDs and cross-references them throughout.

Element Taxonomy

Every element gets a short ID prefix + number and explicitly declares what it supports or attacks.

Prefix	Type	Purpose	Example
D	Definition	Working definition anchoring a key term	D1: "Saturn is a zero-configuration..."
V	View	Core thesis claim (the position)	V1: "Zero-config AI provisioning is feasible"
A	Argument	Evidence or reasoning supporting a view	A1: "Six implementations prove feasibility" → V1
AV	Alternative View	A counterposition from literature or practice	AV1: "Trust-the-network violates zero-trust" → disputes V3
CA	Counter-Argument	Specific reasoning backing an alternative view	CA1: "BeyondCorp requires device-level auth" → supports AV1
B	Barrier	Practical obstacle to adoption (not a logical counter)	B1: "No ecosystem adoption yet"
S	Step	Procedural/algorithmic step in a process	S1: "Discover services via mDNS"

Rules

1. Every A must link to at least one V. State it explicitly: "This argument supports view V1."
2. Every AV must identify which V it disputes. "This alternative view challenges V2."
3. Every CA must link to an AV. Counter-arguments exist in service of an alternative view.
4. Rebuttals reference by ID. "We address counter-argument CA1 with arguments A3 and A7."
5. Cross-references use IDs inline. "As shown in argument A2..." not "As shown previously..."
6. IDs are stable. Once assigned, an ID never changes meaning. New elements get new numbers.

Registry

The argument registry lives at moons/claims/argument-registry.md. It is the single source of truth for all labeled elements. Before creating a new element, check the registry to avoid ID collisions.

Registry Format

## Definitions
- **D1**: [term] — [one-line definition]

## Views (Thesis Claims)
- **V1**: [one-line claim statement] — discussed in [chapters]
- **V2**: ...

## Arguments
- **A1**: [one-line summary] → supports **V1** — [evidence type: existence proof | literature | measurement | comparison]
- **A2**: ...

## Alternative Views
- **AV1**: [one-line counterposition] → disputes **V1** — [source: literature | practice | reviewer]

## Counter-Arguments
- **CA1**: [one-line reasoning] → supports **AV1** — [source]

## Barriers
- **B1**: [one-line obstacle] — [status: active | diminishing | addressed]

LaTeX Integration

Use these commands in thesis.tex for labeled arguments. Define them in the preamble:

% Structured argument labels
\newcommand{\argref}[1]{\textbf{#1}}  % inline reference: \argref{V1}
\newcommand{\argdef}[2]{\noindent\textbf{#1}\quad #2}  % definition block: \argdef{A1}{SLMs are...}

Rendering Patterns

Definition block (like the paper's WD1, WD2):

\begin{description}
  \item[\argref{D1}] A \emph{Saturn service} is any AI endpoint advertised via \texttt{\_saturn.\_tcp.local.} mDNS records.
\end{description}

View statement (like V1, V2, V3):

We contend that:
\begin{description}
  \item[\argref{V1}] Zero-configuration network protocols can provision AI services without end-user configuration;
  \item[\argref{V2}] network-provisioned AI reduces total configuration effort compared to per-user manual setup;
  \item[\argref{V3}] the security trade-offs of broadcast AI discovery are documented and addressable.
\end{description}

Argument block (like A1, A2):

\subsubsection{Six implementations prove feasibility}
\begin{description}
  \item[\argref{A1}] Saturn's six independent client implementations demonstrate that mDNS/DNS-SD can provision AI services across languages and platforms. This argument supports view~\argref{V1}.
\end{description}

Cross-reference in prose:

As established in argument~\argref{A1}, the protocol works across five mDNS libraries.
We address counter-argument~\argref{CA1} in Section~\ref{sec:rebuttals}.

Workflow

Creating a New Element

1. Read moons/claims/argument-registry.md to find the next available ID.
2. Draft the element with its one-line statement and linkage.
3. Add it to the registry.
4. If the element belongs in a specific chapter, note the chapter in the registry entry.
5. When writing the chapter content, use the LaTeX patterns above.

Weaving Arguments Into Prose

When writing a thesis section that involves arguments:

1. Identify which V/A/AV/CA elements are relevant to the section.
2. Introduce the view (V) first, then present supporting arguments (A) with evidence.
3. Present alternative views (AV) honestly, then their counter-arguments (CA).
4. Rebut with cross-references to your own arguments.
5. Every cross-reference uses the ID: "see argument A3" not "see above."

Mapping Saturn's Existing Claims

The three existing claims map directly:

Existing	New ID	Statement
claim-1	V1	Zero-config AI provisioning is feasible via mDNS/DNS-SD
claim-2	V2	Network-provisioned AI reduces total configuration effort
claim-3	V3	Security trade-offs are known and addressable

The evidence in moons/claims/claim-{1,2,3}.md and moons/claims/evidence-matrix.md becomes the source material for specific A arguments.