Subagent-Driven Literature Review

Orchestrate subagents for parallel literature screening and deep-dive extraction.

118|12|Updated Oct 11, 2025
One-click install
npx skills add https://github.com/kthorn/research-superpower --skill subagent-driven-literature-review
Or copy as Structured Prompt for Agent
Please help me install this Agent Skill.
Skill: Subagent-Driven Literature Review
Source: https://github.com/kthorn/research-superpower/tree/main/skills/research/subagent-driven-review
Command: npx skills add https://github.com/kthorn/research-superpower --skill subagent-driven-literature-review

SYSTEM DOCUMENTATION & REQUIREMENTS

What problem does it solves? Manually screening hundreds of papers or performing deep dives on many relevant articles is slow and can overwhelm a single AI's context window. This skill leverages parallel subagents to dramatically speed up large-scale literature reviews, allowing you to get results faster.

Core Features & Use Cases

  • Parallel Screening: Dispatches multiple AI subagents to screen large batches of papers simultaneously, drastically reducing review time.
  • Deep Dive Analysis: Assigns individual subagents to perform detailed data extraction from priority papers, ensuring thoroughness.
  • Citation Network Exploration: Uses subagents to efficiently explore forward and backward citation networks, expanding your research scope.
  • Use Case: When facing a literature review of 100+ papers, simply ask Claude to "screen these 150 papers for relevance." This skill will then dispatch multiple AI subagents to work in parallel, screening papers and extracting data simultaneously, delivering consolidated results much faster than a single agent could.

Quick Start

Example: Initiate parallel screening for a large list of papers

"Screen these 100 papers in parallel for relevance to [your query]."

Frequently Asked Questions about Subagent-Driven Literature Review

High-intent search queries and answers about installing and using this skill.

FAQPage Schema
How can I screen hundreds of research papers faster without overwhelming my context?

Parallel screening dispatches multiple AI subagents simultaneously to review large batches of papers, drastically reducing review time compared to sequential single-agent screening. This approach handles 50+ papers efficiently by distributing the workload across concurrent agents.

Can I use subagents to extract data from multiple papers at scale?

Yes. Deep-dive analysis assigns individual subagents to extract tables, methods, and key findings from priority papers in parallel. Batch dispatch with consolidation checkpoints manages results even when a single context window reaches capacity limits.

What's the best way to explore citation networks across many papers?

Citation-network exploration uses subagents to efficiently traverse forward and backward citation links across your research set. Parallel processing lets you expand research scope faster than manual citation tracking while maintaining structured JSON result formats.

When should I use parallel processing for literature reviews?

Use parallel subagent screening for literature reviews of 50+ papers, especially when you need deep-dive extraction from multiple relevant articles or must explore citation networks. It prevents context overflow and consolidates results via rubric-based prompts and structured output.

How do I set up batch dispatch for screening large paper sets?

Dispatch batches by providing a paper list and relevance query to subagents. The skill implements batch dispatch, rate-limit guidance, and consolidation checkpoints to organize results. Start with abstracts; subagents retrieve full texts and extract structured data as needed.

What happens when my context window fills during a large literature review?

Context management through subagent orchestration delegates overflow papers to parallel agents, preserving your main context. Results consolidate via JSON formats and consolidation checkpoints, allowing you to continue screening and analysis without context constraints.