research-ideation

Research Ideation

From research goal to ranked ideas and a detailed proposal.

Step 0: Load evo-memory (M_I)
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Step 1: Define Goal
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Step 2: Literature Grounding (MUST use paper-navigator scripts)
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Step 3: Generate Ideas (3 directions × 3 personas)
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Step 4: Refine Ideas (3 tracks × N iterations)
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Step 5: ELO Tournament → Present Top-3 to User
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Step 6: Update evo-memory (IDE)
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User Selects
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Step 7: Expand into Proposal
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Step 8: Validate and Iterate

When to Use

• User wants to find a research direction or brainstorm research ideas
• User wants to evaluate whether an idea is novel or worth pursuing
• User wants to rank or compare multiple research ideas
• User wants to generate a research proposal from an idea

When NOT to Use

• Finding/reading papers → use paper-navigator
• Literature survey report → use research-survey
• Planning a paper (story design, experiment plan) → use paper-planning

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Step 0: Load Prior Knowledge from evo-memory

Before any ideation begins, load Ideation Memory (M_I) from prior research cycles:

1. Read M_I at /memory/ideation-memory.md (refer to evo-memory skill)
2. Select the top-2 entries (k_I=2) most relevant to the user's current goal by comparing each entry's Summary and Retrieval Tags against the goal
3. Feasible directions from prior cycles → use as seeds in Step 3 (incorporate as candidate research directions alongside new ones)
4. Unsuccessful directions marked as fundamental failures → use during idea pruning in Step 4 (prune any idea that matches a fundamental failure pattern)
5. If M_I doesn't exist yet (first cycle), skip this step

This step prevents repeating known dead ends and builds on prior successes across research cycles.

Step 1: Define a Long-Term Research Goal

Start with a goal that has both scientific and practical value. Ambitious enough for multiple papers, concrete enough to guide daily decisions.

Ask: "What is the ultimate form of this research direction? What would the world look like if this problem were fully solved?"