| name | science |
| description | Hypothesis-test-analyze cycles for systematic problem-solving — the meta-pattern underlying all the other thinking modes. USE WHEN think about, figure out, try approaches, experiment with, iterate on, improve, optimize, define goal, generate hypotheses, design experiment, measure results, analyze results, full cycle, quick diagnosis, structured investigation, science, hypothesis. |
Science — The Universal Cycle
The scientific method applied to everything. This is the meta-pattern underlying the other thinking modes.
The Universal Cycle
GOAL -----> What does success look like?
|
OBSERVE --> What is the current state?
|
HYPOTHESIZE -> What might work? (Generate MULTIPLE)
|
EXPERIMENT -> Design and run the test
|
MEASURE --> What happened? (Data collection)
|
ANALYZE --> How does it compare to the goal?
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ITERATE --> Adjust hypothesis and repeat
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+------> Back to HYPOTHESIZE
The goal is CRITICAL. Without clear success criteria, you cannot judge results.
Workflow Routing
Core Workflows
| Trigger | Workflow |
|---|
| "define the goal", "what are we trying to achieve" | workflows/DefineGoal.md |
| "what might work", "ideas", "hypotheses" | workflows/GenerateHypotheses.md |
| "how do we test", "experiment design" | workflows/DesignExperiment.md |
| "what happened", "measure", "results" | workflows/MeasureResults.md |
| "analyze", "compare to goal" | workflows/AnalyzeResults.md |
| "iterate", "try again", "next cycle" | workflows/Iterate.md |
| Full structured cycle | workflows/FullCycle.md |
Diagnostic Workflows
| Trigger | Workflow |
|---|
| Quick debugging (15-min rule) | workflows/QuickDiagnosis.md |
| Complex investigation | workflows/StructuredInvestigation.md |
Resource Index
| Resource | Description |
|---|
METHODOLOGY.md | Deep dive into each phase |
Protocol.md | How the thinking modes implement Science |
Templates.md | Goal, Hypothesis, Experiment, Results templates |
Examples.md | Worked examples across scales |
Domain Applications
| Domain | Manifestation |
|---|
| Coding | TDD (Red-Green-Refactor) |
| Products | MVP → Measure → Iterate |
| Research | Question → Study → Analyze |
| Prompts | Prompt → Eval → Iterate |
| Decisions | Options → Council → Choose |
Scale of Application
| Level | Cycle Time | Example |
|---|
| Micro | Minutes | TDD: test, code, refactor |
| Meso | Hours-Days | Feature: spec, implement, validate |
| Macro | Weeks-Months | Product: MVP, launch, measure PMF |
Integration Points with Other Thinking Modes
| Phase | Modes to Invoke |
|---|
| Goal | Council for validation |
| Observe | Research for context |
| Hypothesize | Council for ideas, Red Team for stress-test |
| Experiment | Parallel worktrees for parallel tests |
| Measure | Evals for structured measurement |
| Analyze | Council for multi-perspective analysis |
Key Principles (Quick Reference)
- Goal-First — Define success before starting
- Hypothesis Plurality — NEVER just one idea (minimum 3)
- Minimum Viable Experiments — Smallest test that teaches
- Falsifiability — Experiments must be able to fail
- Measure What Matters — Only goal-relevant data
- Honest Analysis — Compare to goal, not expectations
- Rapid Iteration — Cycle speed > perfect experiments
Anti-Patterns
| Bad | Good |
|---|
| "Make it better" | "Reduce load time from 3s to 1s" |
| "I think X will work" | "Here are 3 approaches: X, Y, Z" |
| "Prove I'm right" | "Design test that could disprove" |
| "Pretend failure didn't happen" | "What did we learn?" |
| "Keep experimenting forever" | "Ship and learn from production" |
Quick Start
- Goal — What does success look like?
- Observe — What do we know?
- Hypothesize — At least 3 ideas
- Experiment — Minimum viable tests
- Measure — Collect goal-relevant data
- Analyze — Compare to success criteria
- Iterate — Adjust and repeat
The answer emerges from the cycle, not from guessing.
