Medical-research-skills journal-latest-issue
Retrieve the latest journal issue's table of contents and abstracts from URL/DOI/PMID/RSS/TOC sources, then generate Chinese key points locally (no external translation APIs) when a new issue needs quick review and archiving.
install
source · Clone the upstream repo
git clone https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills
Claude Code · Install into ~/.claude/skills/
T=$(mktemp -d) && git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/aipoch/medical-research-skills "$T" && mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && cp -r "$T/scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/journal-latest-issue" ~/.claude/skills/aipoch-medical-research-skills-journal-latest-issue && rm -rf "$T"
manifest:
scientific-skills/Evidence Insight/journal-latest-issue/SKILL.mdsource content
Validation Shortcut
Run this minimal command first to verify the supported execution path:
python scripts/journal_digest.py --help
When to Use
- You want the latest issue table of contents (TOC) for one or more journals for quick scanning.
- You need a structured digest (title/DOI/abstract) plus Chinese key points for internal reading notes without using external translation services.
- You want to export results to Markdown and CSV for review, sharing, or archiving.
- You have an RSS feed or TOC URL and want a repeatable pipeline to pull the newest issue content.
- You need a batch mode (JSON input) to process multiple journals in one run.
Key Features
- Fetches the latest issue TOC and (optionally) abstracts by crawling public web pages only.
- Supports multiple input sources: journal name, RSS, TOC URL, and batch JSON configuration.
- Generates Chinese key points locally based on title + abstract (no external translation APIs); keeps the original English abstract for verification.
- Outputs:
(human-readable digest grouped by journal/issue)output.md
(structured table for downstream processing)output.csv
- Safety controls:
- Domain allowlist by default; optional override via
--allow-all - Built-in timeout/retry behavior (implementation-dependent)
- Domain allowlist by default; optional override via
Dependencies
- Python 3.x
- Python standard library only (no third-party packages required)
Example Usage
1) Single journal (optionally provide RSS/TOC)
python scripts/journal_digest.py --journal "Nature" --rss "https://example.com/rss"
2) Batch mode via JSON
Create
input.json:
{ "journals": [ { "name": "Nature", "rss": "https://...", "toc": "https://..." } ] }
Run:
python scripts/journal_digest.py --json input.json
3) Common optional flags
python scripts/journal_digest.py \ --journal "Nature" \ --max-items 20 \ --fetch-abstracts
Implementation Details
Inputs
Supported CLI inputs:
: Journal name (repeatable)--journal
: RSS/TOC feed URL (optional)--rss
: Table of Contents page URL (optional)--toc
: Batch input file (JSON)--json
Batch JSON format:
{ "journals": [ { "name": "Journal Name", "rss": "https://...", "toc": "https://..." } ] }
Optional parameters:
: Allow crawling non-whitelisted domains (must be explicitly enabled)--allow-all
: Maximum number of items to output (default: 20; set to--max-items
for unlimited)0
: Additionally crawl abstracts from article landing pages (slower)--fetch-abstracts
Source selection logic
- If
or--rss
is provided, the skill prioritizes those sources to identify the latest issue content.--toc - If neither is provided, the skill may attempt built-in source hints for common journals (e.g., known RSS endpoints). For best accuracy, prefer providing RSS/TOC (and/or stable identifiers such as ISSN if supported by your setup).
Chinese key points generation (no external translation APIs)
- The skill does not call external translation services.
- It produces Chinese key points as a brief outline derived from the English title and abstract.
- The original English abstract is retained in outputs for manual review and validation.
Outputs
: Latest issue directory and generated key points, grouped by journal/issue.output.md
: Tabular export (e.g., Title / DOI / Abstract / Chinese Key Points).output.csv
Security and compliance notes
- Network access is limited to crawling public pages.
- A domain allowlist is enforced by default; use
only when you explicitly accept the risk of crawling unknown domains.--allow-all - Timeout/retry mechanisms are used to improve robustness (exact values depend on the implementation).
When Not to Use
- Do not use this skill when the required source data, identifiers, files, or credentials are missing.
- Do not use this skill when the user asks for fabricated results, unsupported claims, or out-of-scope conclusions.
- Do not use this skill when a simpler direct answer is more appropriate than the documented workflow.
Required Inputs
- A clearly specified task goal aligned with the documented scope.
- All required files, identifiers, parameters, or environment variables before execution.
- Any domain constraints, formatting requirements, and expected output destination if applicable.
Recommended Workflow
- Validate the request against the skill boundary and confirm all required inputs are present.
- Select the documented execution path and prefer the simplest supported command or procedure.
- Produce the expected output using the documented file format, schema, or narrative structure.
- Run a final validation pass for completeness, consistency, and safety before returning the result.
Output Contract
- Return a structured deliverable that is directly usable without reformatting.
- If a file is produced, prefer a deterministic output name such as
unless the skill documentation defines a better convention.journal_latest_issue_result.md - Include a short validation summary describing what was checked, what assumptions were made, and any remaining limitations.
Validation and Safety Rules
- Validate required inputs before execution and stop early when mandatory fields or files are missing.
- Do not fabricate measurements, references, findings, or conclusions that are not supported by the provided source material.
- Emit a clear warning when credentials, privacy constraints, safety boundaries, or unsupported requests affect the result.
- Keep the output safe, reproducible, and within the documented scope at all times.
Failure Handling
- If validation fails, explain the exact missing field, file, or parameter and show the minimum fix required.
- If an external dependency or script fails, surface the command path, likely cause, and the next recovery step.
- If partial output is returned, label it clearly and identify which checks could not be completed.
Quick Validation
Run this minimal verification path before full execution when possible:
python scripts/journal_digest.py --help
Expected output format:
Result file: journal_latest_issue_result.md Validation summary: PASS/FAIL with brief notes Assumptions: explicit list if any
Deterministic Output Rules
- Use the same section order for every supported request of this skill.
- Keep output field names stable and do not rename documented keys across examples.
- If a value is unavailable, emit an explicit placeholder instead of omitting the field.
Completion Checklist
- Confirm all required inputs were present and valid.
- Confirm the supported execution path completed without unresolved errors.
- Confirm the final deliverable matches the documented format exactly.
- Confirm assumptions, limitations, and warnings are surfaced explicitly.