Probe to Investigate Handoff

Thinking Trail

• Considered: {probe hypothesis and what was tested}
• Rejected: {alternative interpretations eliminated by probe results}
• Surprised by: {unexpected patterns or data discovered during probe}
• Models used: Safe-to-fail experiment design
• Constraints discovered: {governing constraints revealed by probe — cause-effect now visible}

Decisions

1. Probe result: {confirmed|refuted|partial|surprise}
2. Domain shift: Complex → Complicated (cause-effect now understood)
3. Rationale: {probe revealed enough structure for expert analysis}

Actions Taken

• Probe executed: {summary of probe steps}
• Patterns sensed: {what emerged}
• Knowledge written: thinking artifact file for this probe

Output

Probe result: {confirmed|refuted|partial|surprise} Key finding: {one-sentence summary} Patterns: {discovered patterns that inform investigation}

Domain Transition

From: Complex (probe) → To: Complicated (investigate) Constraint shift: enabling → governing. Probe revealed cause-effect relationships. The problem now has known good approaches — expert analysis applies.

For /investigate

• Investigation focus: {specific question informed by probe findings}
• Known constraints: {governing constraints revealed by probe}
• Probe evidence: {key data points from probe — reference thinking artifact file}
• Patterns to investigate: {what the probe surfaced that needs deeper analysis}
• Eliminated causes: {DO NOT re-investigate — probe already ruled these out}
• Do NOT: Re-probe — sufficient structure exists. Analyze with expertise.

Accumulated Context

Token guidance: target 300 tokens inline. For depth, use references — point to thinking artifact files rather than embedding full content. Soft cap: 600 tokens inline per handoff. If you need more, move detail to a knowledge file and reference it. Accumulated cap: 800 tokens across a chain — compress to 200 at cap (keep: decisions, constraints, rejected paths). References to thinking files do NOT count toward the cap.