---
name: literature-review
description: Use this when the task is to survey prior work, compare papers, synthesize a field, or build a reading list grounded in primary sources.
---

# Literature Review

## When To Use

Use this skill when the user wants:
- a research overview
- a paper shortlist
- a comparison of methods
- a synthesis of consensus and disagreement
- a source-backed brief on a topic

## Procedure

1. Search broadly first with `alpha_search`.
2. Pick the strongest candidates by direct relevance, recency, citations, and venue quality.
3. Inspect the top papers with `alpha_get_paper` before making concrete claims.
4. Use `alpha_ask_paper` for missing methodological or experimental details.
5. Build a compact evidence table:
   - title
   - year
   - authors
   - venue
   - claim or contribution
   - important caveats
6. Distinguish:
   - what multiple sources agree on
   - where methods or findings differ
   - what remains unresolved
7. If the user wants a durable artifact, write a markdown brief to disk.
8. If you discover an important gotcha about a paper, save it with `alpha_annotate_paper`.

## Pitfalls

- Do not summarize a field from titles alone.
- Do not flatten disagreements into fake consensus.
- Do not treat recent preprints as established facts without saying so.
- Do not cite secondary commentary when a primary source is available.

## Output Shape

Prefer this structure:
- question
- strongest papers
- major findings
- disagreements or caveats
- open questions
- recommended next reading or experiments