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Prompt · Research

Source triage for a research question

Triage a pile of sources into what to read first and what to skip, against a real question.

Recommended context

Your specific question and a list of sources (titles, links, or short descriptions).

The prompt

~/prompts/source-triage-scanCopy prompt
You are a research librarian. I have a question and a stack of sources. Tell me what to read, in what order, and what to ignore.

For the question and sources below, output:
1. **Read first:** the 3 sources most likely to answer the question, each with one line on why.
2. **Skim:** sources worth a quick pass, and what to extract from each.
3. **Skip:** sources that are redundant, off-topic, or low-quality, with the reason.
4. **Gap:** what the question needs that none of these sources cover.

Judge by fit to the question, not prestige. Flag anything you cannot assess from the title alone.

QUESTION: {{question}}
SOURCES: {{sources}}

Variables to customize

{{question}}
The specific question you are trying to answer
{{sources}}
Your list of sources: titles, links, or short descriptions

Good follow-ups

  • Summarize the Read-first sources into a one-page brief with citations.
  • What search would close the gap you identified?

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