Backward Traceability Skill for Claude
Make every number in the final PDF traceable to the exact code line that produced it. Uses \hypertarget/\hyperlink LaTeX commands and \num{formula} evaluated at compile time. Use for reproducibility and data integrity verification.
Install
one command, takes just this skill from the repositorynpx skills add https://github.com/lingzhi227/agent-research-skills --skill backward-traceabilityThe instruction itself
15 sections, as written by the authorBackward Traceability
Make every number in the final PDF hyperlink back to the exact code line that produced it.
Input
$0— Paper project directory containing code and LaTeX files
References
- Traceability patterns and LaTeX commands:
~/.claude/skills/backward-traceability/references/traceability-patterns.md
Scripts
Scan hypertarget/hyperlink references
python ~/.claude/skills/backward-traceability/scripts/ref_numeric_values.py \
--scan paper/main.tex --output report.json
Reports: all hypertargets, hyperlinks, orphan references, unreferenced numeric values.
Verify cross-reference integrity
python ~/.claude/skills/backward-traceability/scripts/ref_numeric_values.py \
--verify paper/main.tex --code-output results.txt
Cross-checks values between paper text and code output. Reports mismatches.
Workflow
Step 1: Tag Code Outputs
For every numeric value produced by experiment code, add hypertarget tags:
# In experiment code output:
print(f"\\hypertarget{{R1a}}{{45.3}}") # Mean accuracy
print(f"\\hypertarget{{R1b}}{{2.1}}") # Std deviation
Label format: {prefix}{line_number}{letter} where letter = a, b, c... for multiple values on same line.
Step 2: Reference in Paper Text
Use \hyperlink to create clickable references in the paper:
Our method achieves \hyperlink{R1a}{45.3}\% accuracy
($\pm$\hyperlink{R1b}{2.1}).
Step 3: Use \num for Computed Values
For values derived from other values, use \num{} for compile-time evaluation:
% \num{formula, "explanation"} → evaluated at compile time
The improvement is \num{45.3 - 38.7, "accuracy gain"}\%.
Step 4: Generate Appendix Code Listing
Create an appendix with the full code listing, with \hypertarget anchors at relevant lines:
\section*{Appendix: Code Listing}
\begin{lstlisting}[escapechar=@]
@\hypertarget{code1}{}@result = model.evaluate(test_data)
@\hypertarget{code2}{}@accuracy = result['accuracy']
\end{lstlisting}
Step 5: Verify Traceability
- Every number in the paper text must have a corresponding
\hypertargetin the code - Every
\num{}formula must evaluate correctly - Click-test: every hyperlink in the PDF must jump to the correct code line
LaTeX Setup
Required packages:
\usepackage{hyperref}
\usepackage{listings}
Rules
- Every numeric result in the paper MUST trace to code output
- Never manually type numbers — always reference tagged outputs
- Use
\num{}for any derived/computed values - Code listing in appendix must match actual executed code
- Verify all hyperlinks resolve correctly after compilation
Related Skills
- Upstream: experiment-code, data-analysis
- Downstream: paper-compilation
- See also: paper-assembly
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How to use it
Take lingzhi227/backward-traceability from the repository into ~/.claude/skills for personal
use, or into .claude/skills inside a project.
The agent identifies a skill by the name field in its header. Two skills with the
same name cannot sit side by side — one of them will be ignored.