Use this skill whenever proceeding would require hidden assumptions. This is a planning safety gate, not a generic Q&A mode.
Trigger Conditions
- The user goal is broad but not operationalized.
- Success metrics are missing or vague.
- Timeline or resource assumptions are undefined.
- Experimental scope and literature scope conflict.
- A later-stage task depends on an unconfirmed earlier-stage decision.
Required Behavior
- State the ambiguity precisely.
- Explain which decision it blocks.
- Ask the smallest set of targeted clarification questions needed to unblock safe planning.
- If a safe partial plan is still possible, clearly mark the frozen boundary between confirmed and unconfirmed scope.
Quality Rules
- Questions must be concrete and decision-relevant.
- Avoid broad prompts such as "please clarify more details."
- Do not ask questions whose answers can be recovered from existing context.