Name: Scientific figure making
Author: ChenLiu-1996

Open files under references/ only when the active task requires that content; do not preload or read every reference by default.

When to load this skill

Matplotlib figures for papers, slides, or reports that must match this repo’s publication look (fonts, palette, spines, legends, export).
Requests involving grouped bars, trend lines, heatmaps, multi-panel grids, or PDF/SVG/high-DPI output in a scientific-figure context.
References to figures4papers figure_* projects or “same style as the repo figures.”

When not to load

Plotly, Altair, Bokeh, or other interactive / web-first plotting.
EDA-only plots where seaborn or pandas is enough until there is a publication target.
Primary workflow is 3D, GIS, or non-matplotlib tooling.
Illustrator / Figma–first layout or infographic (not matplotlib data plots).

Open files under references/ only when the active task requires that content; do not preload or read every reference by default.

Matplotlib figures for papers, slides, or reports that must match this repo’s publication look (fonts, palette, spines, legends, export).
Requests involving grouped bars, trend lines, heatmaps, multi-panel grids, or PDF/SVG/high-DPI output in a scientific-figure context.
References to figures4papers figure_* projects or “same style as the repo figures.”

Plotly, Altair, Bokeh, or other interactive / web-first plotting.
EDA-only plots where seaborn or pandas is enough until there is a publication target.
Primary workflow is 3D, GIS, or non-matplotlib tooling.
Illustrator / Figma–first layout or infographic (not matplotlib data plots).

File	Open when
references/tutorials.md	End-to-end walkthroughs (bar, trends, heatmap)
references/api.md	Function signatures, `PALETTE`, validation rules
references/common-patterns.md	Layout patterns, legend panel, print-safe bars
references/design-theory.md	Typography, export policy, palette rationale
references/demos.md	Canonical `figure_*` demo links in figures4papers