idea-generation

Q: How do I install idea-generation?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/lingzhi227/agent-research-skills --skill idea-generation in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/idea-generation/ (personal) or .claude/skills/idea-generation/ (project).

by lingzhi227Productivity & Automation

Generate novel research ideas with iterative refinement and novelty checking against literature. Score ideas on Interestingness, Feasibility, and Novelty. Use when brainstorming research directions or validating idea novelty.

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Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/lingzhi227/agent-research-skills --skill idea-generation

01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads idea-generation automatically when relevant.
03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

Idea Generation

Generate and refine novel research ideas with literature-backed novelty assessment.

Input

$0 — Research area, task description, or existing codebase context
$1 — Optional: additional context (e.g., "for NeurIPS", constraints)

Scripts

Novelty check against Semantic Scholar

python ~/.claude/skills/idea-generation/scripts/novelty_check.py \
  --idea "Adaptive attention head pruning via gradient-guided importance" \
  --max-rounds 5

Performs iterative literature search to assess if an idea is novel.

References

Ideation prompts (generation, reflection, novelty): ~/.claude/skills/idea-generation/references/ideation-prompts.md

Workflow

Step 1: Generate Ideas

Given a research area and optional code/paper context:

Generate 3-5 diverse research ideas
For each idea, provide: Name, Title, Experiment plan, and ratings
Use the ideation prompt templates from references

Step 2: Iterative Refinement (up to 5 rounds per idea)

For each idea:

Critically evaluate quality, novelty, and feasibility
Refine the idea while preserving its core spirit
Stop when converged ("I am done") or max rounds reached

Step 3: Novelty Assessment

For each promising idea:

Run novelty_check.py or manually search Semantic Scholar / arXiv
Use the novelty checking prompts from references
Multi-round search: generate queries, review results, decide
Binary decision: Novel / Not Novel with justification

Step 4: Rank and Select

Score each idea on three dimensions (1-10): Interestingness, Feasibility, Novelty
Be cautious and realistic on ratings
Select the top idea(s) for development

Output Format

{
  "Name": "adaptive_attention_pruning",
  "Title": "Adaptive Attention Head Pruning via Gradient-Guided Importance Scoring",
  "Experiment": "Detailed implementation plan...",
  "Interestingness": 8,
  "Feasibility": 7,
  "Novelty": 9,
  "novel": true,
  "most_similar_papers": ["paper1", "paper2"]
}

Rules

Ideas must be feasible with available resources (no requiring new datasets or massive compute)
Do not overfit ideas to a specific dataset or model — aim for wider significance
Be a harsh critic for novelty — ensure sufficient contribution for a conference paper
Each idea should stem from a simple, elegant question or hypothesis
Always check novelty before committing to an idea

Related Skills

Upstream: literature-search, deep-research
Downstream: research-planning, experiment-design
See also: novelty-assessment

FAQ

What does the idea-generation skill do?

How do I install idea-generation?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/lingzhi227/agent-research-skills --skill idea-generation in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/idea-generation/ (personal) or .claude/skills/idea-generation/ (project).

Which AI agents can use idea-generation?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is idea-generation safe to install?

No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.

Who maintains idea-generation?

It is published by lingzhi227 in lingzhi227/agent-research-skills. It has 1,821 recorded installs.