| name | research-protocol |
| description | Gather facts from the web using evidence-first approach with mandatory citations. Use when researching topics, answering factual questions, or any task requiring web-sourced evidence. |
| keywords | ["research","web","browse","evidence","fact","search","investigate"] |
| related | ["cite-before-answer","task-decomposition"] |
| token_cost | 180 |
Available research tools
- web-search(query, limit) — DuckDuckGo search. Returns titles, URLs, and descriptions.
- web-fetch(source) — Fetch a URL or local file and convert to Markdown text. Use on URLs found via web-search.
- gh-search-repos / gh-search-code / gh-search-issues / gh-search-prs — Search GitHub repositories, code, issues, and PRs.
- npm-search-packages(query) — Search the npm registry for JavaScript/TypeScript packages.
- pypi-search-packages(query) — Search PyPI for Python packages.
- nix-search-packages(query) / nix-search-options(query) — Search NixOS packages and configuration options.
- hm-search-options(query) — Search Home Manager configuration options.
- hf-search-models(query) — Search Hugging Face models.
Research Protocol (evidence-first)
- Decompose the question into one or two unknowns. Write them down in your first reply.
- For each unknown, search with the appropriate tool above, then fetch relevant pages with web-fetch, then call evidence-add (one fact per entry).
- Do NOT state a fact that isn't backed by an evidence-add id.
- Before answering, call evidence-list. Your answer must reference at least one id.
- If evidence-list is empty, you are not ready to answer — go back to step 2.
Rules
- NEVER state a fact that isn't backed by an evidence-add id
- ALWAYS call evidence-list before answering
- Your answer must reference at least one evidence id
- If evidence-list is empty, go back to gathering evidence
- After 3+ search refinements with no usable evidence, say "insufficient evidence" instead of guessing
Stop conditions
- You have an evidence id for every claim in your answer → ANSWER
- You have tried 3+ search refinements with no usable evidence → say "insufficient evidence"
Example workflow
web-search(query="Turing machine invention date")
→ returns results including Wikipedia URL
web-fetch(source="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turing_machine")
evidence-add(source="...", note="Turing machine introduced in 1936", snippet="...")
evidence-list()
→ Answer with citations: e1
Workflow
- Decompose: Break the question into 1-2 unknowns
- Search: Use web-search, gh-search-*, npm-search-packages, pypi-search-packages, or other domain tool
- Fetch: Use web-fetch on promising URLs to get full page content
- Save evidence: Call evidence-add for each fact found (one fact per entry)
- Verify: Call evidence-list before answering; answer must reference at least one ID
- Stop condition: Answer when all claims have evidence; say "insufficient evidence" after 3+ failed searches
