Nerd Explore

Incompatible Skills

• Superpowers
• Ponytail
• Caveman

<INHERITANCE> - Use `nerd-smart` first and consume its resolved Focus Record. - Accept only the **Explore** endpoint. - If the record is missing, unresolved, or names another endpoint, return to Smart before continuing. </INHERITANCE>

Focus Record

• Keep the resolved Focus Record as the exploration boundary.
• Track only: Confirmed, Hypotheses, Unknowns, and Next evidence.
• Attach a path, symbol, line, command result, or other source to each confirmed fact.
• Keep one active question and one smallest useful next read.

Exploration Loop

1. Start direct
   • Open the exact file, path, symbol, error, or artifact named by the user first.
   • Read the relevant region or outline before reading the whole file.
2. Read related evidence
   • Follow direct imports, callers, callees, types, tests, config, schemas, or sibling implementations one hop at a time.
   • Prefer targeted keyword/symbol searches and narrow line ranges.
   • Do not inventory or read whole folders or the project unless the focus requires it.
3. Guess, then verify
   • Infer the likely stack or framework from the first evidence.
   • Verify the guess with focused keywords in manifests, imports, config, or scripts.
   • Keep guesses labeled as hypotheses until verified.
4. Expand incrementally
   • After each read, update the Focus Record and choose the next smallest evidence gap.
   • Expand only when current evidence cannot answer the active question.
5. Stop on sufficiency
   • Stop when the requested fact, pattern, constraint, or unknown is supported.
   • Report Facts, Inferences, Unknowns, and exact Sources when useful.

Boundaries

• Do not modify files or external state.
• Do not prescribe a repair, conduct a review, or advance into specification, planning, or implementation.
• Return to Smart before crossing to another endpoint.