Academic Researcher Skill

Expert-level academic research and LaTeX paper writing skill for AI coding assistants

Overview

academic-researcher is a comprehensive skill for AI coding assistants (OpenCode, Claude Code, Gemini CLI, Codex, Cursor, Windsurf) that enables creation of peer-reviewed research papers, literature reviews, and theses with:

• Source Discovery: Web search for peer-reviewed academic sources
• Source Verification: Peer-reviewed vs preprint labeling + quality signals
• Systematic Reviews: PRISMA-style workflow + extraction matrix templates
• IEEE/APA Citations: Citation guides + BibTeX/BibLaTeX workflows
• LaTeX Output: Professional mathematical typesetting
• Quality Assurance: Claim-evidence mapping, reproducibility, threats-to-validity, stats checks
• Multi-Platform: Works with 6+ AI coding assistants

Installation

Option 1: npm (Recommended)

# Global installation
npm install -g academic-researcher-skill

# Project-level installation (opt-in; writes into .claude/.codex/... in the repo)
SKILL_INSTALL_SCOPE=project npm install --save-dev academic-researcher-skill

Local installs default to a no-op to avoid surprising writes; you can also run node install-skill.js --project.

Option 2: npx skills add (Per Platform)

This skill supports installation via the npx skills add command across multiple AI coding platforms:

OpenCode

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

OpenCode auto-discovers skills from .opencode/skills/ directory.

Claude Code

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

Claude Code discovers skills from .claude/skills/ directory.

Gemini CLI

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

Gemini CLI supports skills from .gemini/skills/ directory.

Codex

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

Codex uses .codex/skills/ for skill discovery.

Cursor

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

Cursor discovers skills from .cursor/skills/ directory.

Windsurf

npx skills add https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher --skill academic-researcher

Windsurf uses .windsurf/skills/ for skill discovery.

Option 3: Manual Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/SiluPanda/academic-researcher.git
cd academic-researcher

# Install globally
npm install -g

Supported Platforms

| Platform | Status | Installation Path | Installation Command | |----------|--------|-------------------|---------------------| | OpenCode | ✓ Full | ~/.config/opencode/skills/ | npx skills add ... | | Claude Code | ✓ Full | ~/.claude/skills/ | npx skills add ... | | Gemini CLI | ✓ Full | ~/.gemini/skills/ | npx skills add ... | | Codex | ✓ Full | ~/.codex/skills/ | npx skills add ... | | Cursor | ✓ Full | ~/.cursor/skills/ | npx skills add ... | | Windsurf | ✓ Full | ~/.windsurf/skills/ | npx skills add ... |

All platforms use the same skill format and support:

• Global installation (user-wide)
• Project-level installation

Usage

Once installed, activate the skill in your AI assistant:

Use the academic-researcher skill

Then provide your research details using this template:

## Research Document Request

**Type:** Research Paper / Literature Review / Thesis
**Topic:** [Your research topic]
**Target:** [Conference/Journal name or "General"]
**Length:** [X pages or X words]
**Citation:** [IEEE / APA]
**Deadline:** [Date if applicable]
**Special Requirements:** [Any specific guidelines]

The skill will:

1. Ask clarifying questions about your research
2. Research sources using web search
3. Generate a document outline
4. Write LaTeX source code
5. Provide quality assurance checklist

Features

Source Discovery

• Academic database search (Google Scholar, IEEE Xplore, arXiv, PubMed)
• Peer-reviewed source verification
• Predatory journal detection

Citation Formats

• IEEE (primary) - Computer Science, Engineering
• APA (secondary) - Social Sciences, Humanities

See references/ieee-citation-guide.md and references/apa-citation-guide.md for complete reference examples.

LaTeX Output

• Full mathematical typesetting support
• IEEE conference/journal templates
• Thesis/dissertation templates

See references/latex-math-guide.md for math typesetting examples.

Document Types

• Research papers (conference/journal)
• Literature reviews and surveys
• Theses and dissertations
• Research proposals
• Technical reports

Quality Assurance

• Pre-submission checklist
• Claim-evidence mapping
• Bibliography and citation-key verification
• Reproducibility + threats-to-validity checklists

File Structure

academic-researcher-skill/
├── SKILL.md                    # Main skill definition
├── index.js                    # Package entrypoint (exports canonical paths)
├── package.json                # npm package configuration
├── .claude-skill.json         # Installation configuration
├── install-skill.js           # Installation script
├── uninstall-skill.js         # Uninstallation script
├── scripts/
│   ├── sync-platform-skills.js
│   └── check-citations.js
├── LICENSE                    # MIT License
├── references/
│   ├── bibliography-workflows.md
│   ├── source-evaluation.md
│   ├── systematic-review-prisma.md
│   ├── literature-review-extraction-matrix.md
│   ├── claim-evidence-map.md
│   ├── reproducibility-checklist.md
│   ├── statistical-reporting.md
│   ├── threats-to-validity.md
│   ├── ieee-citation-guide.md
│   ├── apa-citation-guide.md
│   ├── latex-math-guide.md
│   └── templates/
│       ├── ieee-conference.tex
│       ├── apa7-manuscript.tex
│       ├── literature-review.tex
│       ├── systematic-review.tex
│       ├── thesis.tex
│       └── references.bib
└── examples/
    ├── sample-outline.md
    ├── vocabulary-template.md
    ├── systematic-review-protocol-template.md
    ├── extraction-matrix-template.csv
    └── claim-evidence-map-template.md

Output Formats

Primary: LaTeX (.tex)

The skill generates LaTeX source files that you can compile to PDF:

# IEEE-style (BibTeX)
pdflatex paper.tex
bibtex paper
pdflatex paper.tex
pdflatex paper.tex

# APA-style (BibLaTeX + biber)
pdflatex paper.tex
biber paper
pdflatex paper.tex
pdflatex paper.tex

# Or use Overleaf (recommended)
# Upload .tex file to overleaf.com

Alternative: Markdown

For quick review or conversion:

pandoc paper.tex -o paper.md
pandoc paper.tex -o paper.docx

Examples

Research Paper

User: Write a research paper about transformer models for time series forecasting

Skill: [Asks about target venue, length, citation format, then proceeds]

Literature Review

User: Create a literature review on federated learning in healthcare

Skill: [Researches sources, structures thematically, writes LaTeX]

Thesis Chapter

User: Write the methodology chapter for my PhD thesis on explainable AI

Skill: [Creates structured chapter with proper academic tone]

Development

Testing Locally

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Test project installation script
node install-skill.js --project
ls -la .claude/skills/academic-researcher/

# Test global installation script (optional)
node install-skill.js --global
ls -la ~/.claude/skills/academic-researcher/

Publishing to npm

# Login to npm
npm login

# Publish
npm publish --access public

# Or with a scope
npm publish --access public --scope @your-org

Requirements

• Node.js >= 14.0.0
• AI coding assistant (OpenCode, Claude Code, etc.)
• LaTeX distribution (optional, for PDF generation)
  • Overleaf (recommended)
  • TinyTeX
  • MacTeX

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork this repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

Credits

Built for the AI agent community. Inspired by:

• academic-research-writer
• research-paper-writer
• research