reduce

name	reduce
description	Extract insights from source material. Creates atomic notes with prose titles, YAML frontmatter, and source attribution.
tags	["processing","extraction","pipeline"]

Skill: reduce

Delegates to: @ars-contexta:processor

Trigger

Invoke this skill when the user wants to process source material from the inbox, extract insights, or run the extraction phase of the pipeline.

Arguments

• <file> — path to a specific source file in inbox/
• all — process all files currently in inbox/

If no argument is provided, list the contents of inbox/ and ask the user which sources to process.

Behavior

Runtime configuration Before processing, read ops/derivation-manifest.md for vocabulary mappings:

• vocabulary.notes — notes folder name
• vocabulary.inbox — inbox folder name
• vocabulary.note — note type name
• vocabulary.topic_map — MOC references

If the manifest does not exist, use universal defaults: notes/, inbox/, "note", "topic map".

Processing each source For each source file:

1. Read the full source content

2. Identify discrete insights worth keeping (avoid the Collector's Fallacy — not everything needs a note)

3. For each insight, create an atomic note:

   Title (prose-as-title) Write the title as a proposition or claim, not a noun phrase. Apply the composability test: since [[title]] must read naturally as a sentence fragment. Example: "Spaced repetition outperforms massed practice for long-term retention" passes; "Spaced Repetition" fails.

   YAML frontmatter

   ---
   description: {~150 chars, adds information beyond the title}
   type: {claim | pattern | preference | fact | decision | question}
   created: {YYYY-MM-DD}
   ---
   

   Body (150-400 words) Write in prose with connective words that show reasoning (because, therefore, however, which means). Not a summary — your own synthesis of why this insight matters.

   Source attribution

   Source: [[{source filename without extension}]]
   

   Topic suggestions Add 1-3 initial topic links as candidates for MOC placement. These will be confirmed during the reflect phase.

4. Save the note to the domain notes folder (e.g., notes/, reflections/, concepts/)

5. Move the processed source to archive/

6. Log the created note paths for the reflect phase

Quality gates (check each note before saving)

• Title passes composability test: since [[title]] reads naturally
• Description is ~150 chars and differs meaningfully from the title
• Body is 150-400 words with connective reasoning language
• Source is attributed
• At least one topic suggestion is present

Output Report: number of sources processed, number of notes created, list of note titles, any sources skipped and why.