Domain-agnostic knowledge acquisition — from zero to structured expertise through conversational learning
Turn any unfamiliar domain into structured, connected knowledge through progressive conversation.
Learning a new domain is hard because you don't know what you don't know. This skill provides a systematic approach to go from zero knowledge to a well-structured skill file.
Goal: Understand the domain's shape before diving in.
| Technique | Example Question | What You Learn |
|---|---|---|
| Boundary mapping | "What does X include and exclude?" | Scope |
| Vocabulary scan |
| "What are the 5 key terms?" |
| Entry points |
| Expert identification | "Who are the authorities?" | Trust sources |
| Adjacent domains | "What's related but different?" | Context |
Exit criteria: Can describe the domain in one sentence. Can list 5-10 key terms.
Goal: Understand the 3-5 ideas everything else builds on.
Exit criteria: Can explain core concepts without jargon. Can answer "why does this exist?"
Goal: Move from "I understand the concept" to "I can apply it."
| Elaboration Type | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Happy path | How it works normally | "Walk me through a typical OAuth flow" |
| Edge cases | Where it breaks | "What happens when the token expires mid-request?" |
| Anti-patterns | Common mistakes | "What do beginners always get wrong?" |
| Trade-offs | Decision framework | "When would you NOT use event sourcing?" |
Exit criteria: Can identify when to use and when NOT to use the thing.
Goal: Integrate new knowledge with what you already know.
Exit criteria: At least 2 connections to existing skills identified.
Goal: Store the learning in the right format and location.
| What You Learned | Store As | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Domain reference knowledge | SKILL.md | skills/[domain]/ |
| Step-by-step procedure | .instructions.md | instructions/ |
| Interactive workflow | .prompt.md | prompts/ |
| Cross-project pattern | GK-* | Global knowledge |
| One-off insight | GI-* | Global insights |
Exit criteria: At least one memory file created. Synapses updated.
| Signal | Type of Gap | Action |
|---|---|---|
| "I don't know the right question to ask" | Vocabulary gap | Return to Phase 1 |
| "I understand the words but not the concept" | Foundation gap | Return to Phase 2 |
| "I understand it but can't apply it" | Elaboration gap | Return to Phase 3 |
| "I know this but it feels isolated" | Connection gap | Phase 4 |
| "I keep re-learning this" | Consolidation gap | Phase 5 |
If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.
After learning a concept, try to explain it in one paragraph using no jargon. If you can't, identify which part is unclear and loop back.
A good bootstrap learning output (SKILL.md) should:
See synapses.json for connections.