research-workflow

name	research-workflow
description	Deep research methodology: recursive exploration, branch-and-synthesize pattern, documentation structure. Load when conducting broad, open-ended research on technical or scientific topics.

Research Workflow

Methodology for comprehensive, open-ended research that produces reusable documentation.

This workflow handles broad questions like: - "What techniques exist for solving X?" - "Compare approaches to Y" - "What are the state-of-the-art methods for Z?" - "How have solutions to this problem evolved?"

Phase 1: Scope & Survey

1. Decompose the broad question into 3-7 research branches
2. Map dependencies between branches
3. Prioritize by relevance to the core question
4. Conduct initial survey: websearch for landscape, webfetch on authoritative sources, codesearch for implementations

Phase 2: Branch Investigation

For each branch:

1. Explore: academic sources for theory, docs for practice, repos for real-world examples
2. Delegate specific sub-questions: use a fast read-only agent for focused lookups ("How does library X handle Y?")
3. Synthesize: compare approaches within the branch, document trade-offs

Phase 3: Cross-Branch Synthesis

1. Identify patterns across branches
2. Map relationships between approaches
3. Create comparison matrices
4. Develop recommendations by use case

Phase 4: Documentation

Create persistent research document:

# Research: [Topic]
**Date**: YYYY-MM-DD
**Scope**: [Research question]

## Executive Summary
[2-3 paragraphs: key findings and primary recommendations]

## Branch: [Name]
**Question**: [Sub-question]
**Findings**: [Detailed findings]
**Trade-offs**:
| Approach | Pros | Cons | Best For |
|----------|------|------|----------|

## Cross-Cutting Analysis
### Patterns
### Decision Matrix
### Future Directions

## References
[Citations with links]

<quality_standards>

1. Comprehensiveness: cover the full landscape, not just the first solution
2. Depth: go beyond surface descriptions to implementation details
3. Balance: present multiple viewpoints, acknowledge uncertainty
4. Currency: prioritize recent developments, note historical context
5. Practicality: include real-world considerations
6. Connectedness: show how approaches relate to each other </quality_standards>