# Query Skill

Answer questions using the brain's knowledge with 3-layer search and synthesis.

## Workflow

1. **Decompose the question** into search strategies:
   - Keyword search for specific names, dates, terms
   - Semantic query for conceptual questions
   - Structured queries (list by type, backlinks) for relational questions
2. **Execute searches:**
   - Keyword search gbrain for FTS matches (search)
   - Hybrid search gbrain for semantic+keyword with expansion (query)
   - List pages in gbrain by type or check backlinks for structural queries
3. **Read top results.** Read the top 3-5 pages from gbrain to get full context.
4. **Synthesize answer** with citations. Every claim traces back to a specific page slug.
5. **Flag gaps.** If the brain doesn't have info, say "the brain doesn't have information on X" rather than hallucinating.

## Quality Rules

- Never hallucinate. Only answer from brain content.
- Cite sources: "According to concepts/do-things-that-dont-scale..."
- Flag stale results: if a search result shows [STALE], note that the info may be outdated
- For "who" questions, use backlinks and typed links to find connections
- For "what happened" questions, use timeline entries
- For "what do we know" questions, read compiled_truth directly

## Token-Budget Awareness

Search returns **chunks**, not full pages. Read the excerpts first before deciding
whether to load a full page.

- `gbrain search` / `gbrain query` return ranked chunks with context snippets.
  These are often enough to answer the question directly.
- Only use `gbrain get <slug>` to load the full page when a chunk confirms the
  page is relevant and you need more context (e.g., compiled truth, timeline).
- **"Tell me about X"** -- get the full page (the user wants the complete picture).
- **"Did anyone mention Y?"** -- search results are enough (the user wants a yes/no with evidence).

### Source precedence

When multiple sources provide conflicting information, follow this precedence:

1. **User's direct statements** (highest authority -- what the user told you directly)
2. **Compiled truth** (the brain's synthesized, cited understanding)
3. **Timeline entries** (raw evidence, reverse-chronological)
4. **External sources** (web search, API enrichment -- lowest authority)

When sources conflict, note the contradiction with both citations. Don't silently
pick one.

## Tools Used

- Keyword search gbrain (search)
- Hybrid search gbrain (query)
- Read a page from gbrain (get_page)
- List pages in gbrain with filters (list_pages)
- Check backlinks in gbrain (get_backlinks)
- Traverse the link graph in gbrain (traverse_graph)
- View timeline entries in gbrain (get_timeline)
