# By Situation: Where to Turn in a Project

URL: https://research-memex.org/docs/introduction/by-situation
Description: Find a page by the situation in front of you, from deciding whether AI belongs in a task to submitting the work.



*Start from what is in front of you, not from where the site files it.*

Each row names a situation and the page that answers it, using the same page frontmatter the site offers an assistant connected to the Memex server. They are selected routes, not everything a reader might need: most setup guides for single tools are not listed. [Getting Oriented](/docs/introduction/getting-oriented) maps the whole site by tab.

## Choosing [#choosing]

- [You have just arrived and do not know where anything is.](/docs/introduction/getting-oriented): Getting Oriented
- [You want the principles behind this approach before handing any task to AI.](/docs/introduction/core-principles): Core Principles of the Research Memex
- [You are unsure whether AI belongs in this task at all.](/docs/introduction/ai-choice-philosophy): AI as Choice: A Framework for Conscious Engagement
- [You have no clear picture of how you work with AI or where agents could fit.](/docs/implementation/roles/research-ai-orientation): Research–AI Orientation, a role to give your AI

## Setting up [#setting-up]

- [You have not installed anything yet and do not know where to start.](/docs/implementation/foundational-setup/quick-start-checklist): Quick Start Checklist
- [You want practice papers and worksheets before working with your own sources.](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/student-vault): Student Vault: A Research Workspace
- [You want to see what tools exist before picking one.](/docs/toolkit): Toolkit
- [You want your research environment set up for you.](/docs/toolkit/carrel): Carrel: A Private Desk in the Library, Set Up by AI

## Working [#working]

- [You know your prompt is vague and want to see a specific one.](/docs/implementation/core-references/cognitive-blueprint-prompts): Cognitive Blueprints: Advanced Prompt Templates
- [You are doing or teaching a literature review and want a worked example.](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/systematic-review-syllabus): Case Study: Systematic Reviews with AI
- [You want to compare your own synthesis of the sources with an AI's.](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/session-3-human-vs-ai-synthesis): Session 3: Human vs. AI Synthesis — A Replication Experiment
- [You want an agent to screen, extract or search the literature for your review.](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/claude-code-slr-workflow): Building an SLR with Claude Code

## Checking [#checking]

- [You suspect the model, not your prompt, is why the output is generic.](/docs/implementation/core-references/ai-model-discovery-protocol): AI Model Discovery Protocol
- [An AI output looks wrong and you cannot yet say how.](/docs/implementation/core-references/failure-museum): The Failure Museum: A Guide to AI Limitations
- [The AI output you just got feels generic, too smooth or too agreeable.](/docs/implementation/roles/output-mirror): Output Mirror, a role to give your AI
- [You cannot find the paper an AI cited.](/docs/toolkit/zotero-mcp): Zotero MCP: Your Citation Library as an Agent Tool

## Composing [#composing]

- [You want your way of working with AI checked before you add to it.](/docs/implementation/roles/arrangement-auditor): Arrangement Auditor, a role to give your AI
- [You are designing a team of AI agents for a research task.](/docs/case-studies/systematic-reviews/session-4-agentic-workflows): Session 4: Advanced Agentic Workflows
- [You want to see what a working setup with several AIs looks like.](/docs/advanced-topics/agentic-workflows): Agentic Research Workflows
- [You are thinking of adding another AI, a memory layer or an approval step.](/docs/advanced-topics/composing-agentic-research-systems): Composing an Agentic Research System

## Submitting [#submitting]

- [You are about to submit and are unsure what to disclose about AI use.](/docs/introduction/publishing-realities): Publishing Realities: Navigating AI in Academic Research