contribute-skills-via-pr

name	contribute-skills-via-pr
description	Step-by-step guidance for contributing a new skill to the NeuroAIHub/awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills repository via GitHub Pull Request, including SKILL.md format requirements, quality rules, and PR checklist
domain	community-contribution
version	1.0.0
authors	["Claude (AI-assisted)"]
review_status	ai-generated

Contribute Skills via PR

Purpose

This skill encodes the complete workflow for contributing a new skill to the NeuroAIHub/awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills repository via GitHub Pull Request. It covers SKILL.md format requirements, quality rules enforced by maintainers, the PR submission process, and the no-Git alternative.

When to Use This Skill

Activate when the user:

• Wants to contribute a skill to the NeuroAIHub community repository
• Asks how to submit a PR to awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills
• Wants to know the SKILL.md format or quality requirements for this repository
• Asks about the review process or PR checklist for this repo

Research Planning Protocol

1. State the contribution goal — What domain knowledge does the new skill encode? Is it a new skill, an improvement, or a verification?
2. Check for overlap — Confirm the skill does not duplicate an existing one (see overlap checklist below).
3. Declare the skill structure — Outline the sections and key parameters before writing.
4. Note quality constraints — All numerical parameters need citations; no page numbers; under 500 lines.
5. Present the plan and WAIT for user confirmation before writing the SKILL.md.

Verification Notice

This skill was generated by AI from direct inspection of the NeuroAIHub/awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills repository (April 2026). Repository requirements may change — always check the current CONTRIBUTING.md before submitting. If you find errors, please open an issue.

Step 1: Check for Overlap

Before writing, verify your skill does not duplicate an existing one. Current skills include (41 total):

eeg-preprocessing-pipeline-guide, erp-analysis, mne-python-guide, fmri-preprocessing-pipeline-guide, fmri-glm-analysis-guide, fmri-task-design-guide, brain-connectivity-modeler, neural-decoding-analysis, neural-population-analysis-guide, calcium-imaging-analysis-guide, lesion-symptom-mapping-guide, optogenetics-protocol-designer, spiking-network-model-builder, drift-diffusion-model, bayesian-cognitive-model-builder, act-r-model-builder, evidence-accumulation-selector, parameter-recovery-checker, signal-detection-analysis, cogsci-statistics, cogsci-power-analysis, cogsci-visualization, neuroimaging-power-guide, neuroimaging-sample-size-calculator, cognitive-paradigm-design, eeg-paradigm-designer, divergent-thinking-scoring, alternative-uses-task-designer, creativity-self-efficacy-mediation, reading-time-analysis, self-paced-reading-designer, sentence-stimulus-norming, infant-looking-time-designer, tom-task-selector, neuropsych-battery-selector, visual-search-array-generator, research-literacy, paper-to-skill, contribute-skill, verify-skill, share-case

Step 2: Write the SKILL.md

Required YAML Frontmatter

Skill name may only contain lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens. The name must match the folder name.

---
name: "my-skill-name"
description: "One-sentence summary of the domain knowledge encoded"
domain: "your-domain"
version: "1.0.0"
authors:
  - "Your Name"
papers:
  - "Author et al., Year"
dependencies:
  required:
    - research-literacy
review_status: "ai-generated"
---

Mandatory fields: name, description, review_status. All others are recommended.

Required Sections (in this order)

1. Purpose — What domain knowledge this skill encodes and why it is useful
2. When to Use — Trigger conditions that activate this skill
3. Research Planning Protocol — The standard 5-step preamble (copy template below)
4. Verification Notice — The standard AI disclaimer (copy template below)
5. Domain-specific content — The actual skill logic with cited parameters

Research Planning Protocol Template

## Research Planning Protocol

1. **State the research question** — ...
2. **Justify the method choice** — ...
3. **Declare expected outcomes** — ...
4. **Note assumptions and limitations** — ...
5. **Present the plan to the user and WAIT for confirmation** before proceeding.

Verification Notice Template

## Verification Notice

> This skill was generated by AI from academic literature. All parameters,
> thresholds, and citations require independent verification before use in
> research. If you find errors, please open an issue at
> https://github.com/NeuroAIHub/awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills/issues.

Quality Rules

Rule	Requirement
Skill name	Lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens only. Must match the folder name. e.g., my-new-skill
Citations	All numerical parameters must have (Author, Year)
No page numbers	Use (Luck, 2014) NOT (Luck, 2014, p. 187)
Line limit	SKILL.md must be under 500 lines
Directory name	kebab-case, must match the name field in YAML frontmatter
Commit prefix	feat:, fix:, docs:, or refactor:

Step 3: Submit via Git PR

# 1. Fork on GitHub, then clone your fork
git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills.git
cd awesome_cognitive_and_neuroscience_skills

# 2. Create a feature branch
git checkout -b feat/<skill-name>

# 3. Create skill directory and add files
mkdir -p skills/<skill-name>
# copy your SKILL.md into skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md
# optionally: mkdir skills/<skill-name>/references

# 4. Commit and push
git add skills/<skill-name>/
git commit -m "feat: add <skill-name> skill for <one-line description>"
git push origin feat/<skill-name>

# 5. Open PR on GitHub against the master branch

PR Template Checklist

When opening the PR, all items must be checked:

• SKILL.md has required YAML frontmatter (name, description, review_status)
• Includes Research Planning Protocol section
• Includes Verification Notice section
• All numerical parameters have (Author, Year) citations
• Citations do not contain specific page numbers
• SKILL.md is under 500 lines
• Directory name uses kebab-case
• Commit messages use conventional prefixes (feat:, fix:, docs:, etc.)

Alternative: No-Git Contribution

If you prefer not to use Git, use the contribute-skill meta-skill inside Claude Code:

1. Say "contribute a skill" in Claude Code
2. The meta-skill generates a SKILL.md interactively
3. It submits the skill as a GitHub Issue with the community-skill label
4. Maintainers review and merge on your behalf

After Submission

Maintainers may request changes such as:

• Adding missing (Author, Year) citations
• Removing page numbers from citations
• Reducing line count if over 500
• Clarifying the Research Planning Protocol or Verification Notice

Use the verify-skill meta-skill to self-review your SKILL.md before submitting to catch common issues early.