academic-search

name academic-search description Search and analyze academic literature. Find papers, understand research methodologies, and synthesize academic findings for research projects. version 1.0.0 author claude-office-skills license MIT category research tags ["academic","papers","research","literature-review","citations"] department Research/Academia models {"recommended":["claude-sonnet-4","claude-opus-4"],"compatible":["claude-3-5-sonnet","gpt-4","gpt-4o"]} mcp {"server":"office-mcp","tools":["create_docx","extract_text_from_pdf"]} capabilities ["literature_search","paper_analysis","methodology_assessment","citation_management","research_synthesis"] languages ["en","zh"] related_skills ["deep-research","web-search","content-writer"] Academic Search Skill Overview I help you navigate academic literature, find relevant papers, understand research methodologies, and synthesize findings for your research projects or literature reviews. What I can do: Formulate academic search queries Recommend databases and search strategies Analyze paper abstracts and summaries Explain research methodologies Help structure literature reviews Identify research gaps What I cannot do: Access full-text papers (unless provided) Execute actual database searches Access paywalled journals Conduct original research How to Use Me Step 1: Define Your Research Topic Tell me: Your research question or topic Academic field/discipline Scope (broad survey vs. specific topic) Purpose (literature review, thesis, curiosity) Step 2: Get Search Strategy I'll provide: Optimized search queries Recommended databases Key terms and synonyms Search methodology Step 3: Analyze Findings If you share papers/abstracts, I can: Summarize key findings Explain methodologies Identify themes and patterns Help organize citations Academic Databases General Databases Database Coverage Access Google Scholar All fields Free Semantic Scholar AI-enhanced search Free Microsoft Academic Computer Science focus Free Web of Science High-impact journals Subscription Scopus Comprehensive Subscription JSTOR Humanities, social sciences Subscription Field-Specific Databases Field Database Notes Medicine PubMed, MEDLINE Free, comprehensive Computer Science arXiv, DBLP, ACM DL arXiv free Physics arXiv, APS Journals arXiv free Psychology PsycINFO, PsycArticles Subscription Business EBSCO, ProQuest Subscription Law Westlaw, LexisNexis Subscription Engineering IEEE Xplore, ScienceDirect Subscription Preprint Servers Server Fields arXiv Physics, Math, CS, Biology bioRxiv Life Sciences medRxiv Medical Sciences SSRN Social Sciences ChemRxiv Chemistry Search Query Formulation Boolean Operators AND: Both terms must appear "machine learning" AND healthcare OR: Either term can appear "deep learning" OR "neural network" NOT: Exclude term climate change NOT politics (): Group terms (AI OR "artificial intelligence") AND ethics Advanced Techniques 1. PICO Framework (Medical/Health) P - Population/Patient I - Intervention C - Comparison O - Outcome Example: "elderly patients" AND "exercise therapy" AND "cognitive function" 2. Concept Mapping Main Concept: Machine Learning in Education ├── Synonyms: AI, artificial intelligence, deep learning ├── Related: adaptive learning, intelligent tutoring └── Applications: personalization, assessment, analytics Query: ("machine learning" OR "artificial intelligence" OR "deep learning") AND (education OR learning OR "tutoring system") 3. Citation Chaining Forward citation: Who cited this paper? Backward citation: What did this paper cite? → Both methods help find related work Search Filters Filter Use Case Date range Recent developments Publication type Review vs. empirical Author Expert's work Journal High-impact venues Language Specific language papers Paper Analysis Framework Reading Strategy: Three-Pass Method Pass 1: Survey (5-10 min) Read title, abstract, introduction Scan headings and figures Read conclusion Outcome : Decide if worth reading more Pass 2: Understanding (30-60 min) Read carefully but skip proofs/details Note key points and questions Understand figures and tables Outcome : Grasp main contributions Pass 3: Deep Dive (hours) Virtually re-implement the work Challenge every assumption Identify strengths and weaknesses Outcome : Expert-level understanding Critical Analysis Questions Aspect Questions Research Question Is it clear? Important? Novel? Methodology Appropriate? Rigorous? Reproducible? Results Convincing? Statistically valid? Limitations Acknowledged? How severe? Contribution What's new? How significant? Output Format Search Strategy Output # Academic Search Strategy: [Topic] **Research Question** : [Your question] **Field** : [Discipline] **Date** : [Date] --- ## Search Queries ### Primary Query [Optimized query with Boolean operators] ### Alternative Queries 1. `[Broader query]` 2. `[Narrower query]` 3. `[Related angle]` --- ## Recommended Databases | Priority | Database | Rationale | |----------|----------|-----------| | 1 | [Database] | [Why] | | 2 | [Database] | [Why] | | 3 | [Database] | [Why] | --- ## Key Terms & Synonyms | Concept | Terms to Search | |---------|-----------------| | [Concept 1] | term1, term2, term3 | | [Concept 2] | term1, term2, term3 | --- ## Search Methodology 1. Start with [database] using [query] 2. Apply filters: [filters] 3. Review first [X] results by relevance 4. Use citation chaining on key papers 5. Search [database 2] for [specific aspect] --- ## Expected Paper Types - Foundational/Classic papers - Recent developments (last 2-3 years) - Review/Survey articles - Empirical studies - Methodology papers --- ## Quality Indicators to Look For - [ ] Peer-reviewed venue - [ ] Citation count appropriate for age - [ ] Reputable authors/institutions - [ ] Clear methodology - [ ] Reproducible results Literature Review Output # Literature Review: [Topic] **Scope** : [What's covered] **Papers Analyzed** : [Number] **Date** : [Date] --- ## Overview [Summary of the research landscape] --- ## Themes ### Theme 1: [Name] [Summary of papers in this theme] **Key Papers** : - [Author] ([Year]): [Key finding] - [Author] ([Year]): [Key finding] ### Theme 2: [Name] [Summary of papers in this theme] --- ## Methodological Approaches | Approach | Papers Using It | Pros | Cons | |----------|-----------------|------|------| | [Method 1] | [X] | | | | [Method 2] | [X] | | | --- ## Key Findings 1. [Finding 1] - supported by [papers] 2. [Finding 2] - supported by [papers] 3. [Finding 3] - supported by [papers] --- ## Research Gaps 1. [Gap 1]: [Why it matters] 2. [Gap 2]: [Why it matters] --- ## Recommendations for Future Research 1. [Direction 1] 2. [Direction 2] --- ## References [Formatted citations] Citation Formats APA 7th Edition Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), Page–Page. https://doi.org/xxxxx IEEE [1] A. Author and B. Author, "Title of article," Journal Name, vol. X, no. X, pp. XX–XX, Month Year. Chicago Author Last, First. "Title of Article." Journal Name Volume, no. Issue (Year): Page–Page. Tips for Better Results Start with review articles to understand the landscape Use citation chaining - both forward and backward Check author profiles for related work Set up alerts for new papers on your topic Use reference managers (Zotero, Mendeley) Read abstracts first to filter efficiently Focus on recent + seminal papers Limitations Cannot access full-text papers directly Cannot execute database searches Knowledge has training cutoff Cannot assess very recent publications Cannot verify citation counts in real-time Built by the Claude Office Skills community. Contributions welcome!