---
description: Research current best practices on a topic; store durable notes
argument-hint: "<topic> [project-slug]"
---

Research $ARGUMENTS with current web sources — the last token is the
project slug if it names a directory under `projects/`, the rest is
the topic. Purpose: inspiration and grounding for the principal's
artefacts — he does not want to reinvent what the world
has already solved. One research, one question: a topic that turns
out to be several questions becomes several notes, each answering
one — never one combined document.

1. Search for current best practices, established frameworks, and notable
   recent developments. Prefer primary and high-quality sources; note
   publication dates. Mark epistemic status: consensus vs. emerging vs.
   contested.
2. Write `research/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic-slug>.md` in the project (English,
   immutable): question, key findings with sources, options with
   trade-offs, and a short "relevance to this project" section with a
   concrete recommendation.
3. Index. Add an entry to `research/00-INDEX.md` in the
   shape of `templates/index.md` (create the index if missing); the
   ledger's Research table reads the note's front-matter, nobody
   writes a row. Remake the ledger, `python scripts/forge-ledger.py <slug>`.
4. Summarise for the principal,
   leading with the recommendation
   and the trade-offs, not a literature review.
5. If findings suggest changes to an artefact of the chain, propose
   them explicitly — via `/forge <state>`, never silently.