Agent skill

Lens Debate

by srid in srid/emanote

Run a structural-review debate between two lenses — lowy (volatility-based decomposition) and hickey (structural simplicity) — on the current diff.

Custom licenceAuto-check passed

Install Lens Debate

skills CLI
$ npx skills add srid/emanote --skill lens-debate -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install srid/emanote lens-debate --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/srid/emanote.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/lens-debate .claude/skills/lens-debate && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Facts

Skill name
lens-debate
GitHub stars
963
Token cost
~3.7k tokens
SKILL.md length
1,815 words
Files
2
Skills in repo
25
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Custom licence

At a glance

Run a structural-review debate between two lenses — lowy (volatility-based decomposition) and hickey (structural simplicity) — on the current diff.

  • Works in 3 steps: Resolve context → Run the debate Workflow → Present the result
  • The user types /lens-debate
  • SKILL.md covers Why this shape, Why deadlock is not possible, Arguments and Steps, plus 2 more sections
  • Runs JavaScript scripts from its folder; calls git, gh and just; reaches kolu.dev

What it does

Lens Debate is an agent skill from srid/emanote. Run a structural-review debate between two lenses — lowy (volatility-based decomposition) and hickey (structural simplicity) — on the current diff. Each reviews independently, then they cross-examine every finding until they agree per-finding, and the agreed fixes are applied. Use when the user types /lens-debate, or asks to "have lowy and hickey review this", "run the lens debate", "debate this diff structurally", or "argue the structure of this PR until the lenses agree".

Its SKILL.md is about 3.7k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 1 other file (for example `debate.workflow.js`).

The repository describes itself as: Emanate a structured view of your plain-text notes.

When your agent uses it

  • The user types /lens-debate
  • Asks to have lowy and hickey review this
  • Run the lens debate
  • Debate this diff structurally

Example prompts

  • “have lowy and hickey review this”
  • “run the lens debate”
  • “debate this diff structurally”
  • “/lens-debate”

Requirements

  • Node.js

Workflow steps

3 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

  1. Resolve context
  2. Run the debate Workflow
  3. Present the result

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 9d01037. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

  • Tool permissions

    Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.

    From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.

  • Runs code

    Ships script files (JavaScript), which the agent can run.

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • git
    • gh
    • just

    From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.

  • Network

    Hosts in commands or code, which the agent is likely to contact:

    • kolu.dev

    From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.

  • Credentials

    Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.

    From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Lens Debate loads about 3.7k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 123 tokens; SKILL.md has 1,815 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~123
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~3.7k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

Its licence (Custom licence) doesn't allow us to republish the file, so here is its outline and opening line. It has 1,815 words (~3,718 tokens).

“Two structural reviewers argue your change to a settled conclusion. lowy (volatility-based decomposition — do boundaries encapsulate axes of change?) and hickey (structural simplicity — are independent concerns complected, or one thing fragmented?) each review the diff independently, then cross-examine…”

— opening of SKILL.md by srid, Custom licence
name
lens-debate
argument-hint
[<pr-number>] [--base <branch>] [--max-rounds <n>] [--no-commit] [--no-apply] [--no-comment] [--with-police]

Read the full SKILL.md on GitHub

Files

SKILL.md and 1 other file in .agents/skills/lens-debate of srid/emanote.

  • SKILL.md
  • debate.workflow.js

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 9d01037

Compare with similar skills

Lens Debate next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Lens Debate compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Lens Debate this skillsrid/emanote963—~3.7kAutomated safety check: PassCustom licence
Structured Datathedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~420Automated safety check: PassMIT
Bio Structural Biology Modern Structure PredictionFreedomIntelligence/OpenClaw-Medical-Skills3.1k1 repos~2.5kAutomated safety check: PassNone
Investor LensesHKUDS/Vibe-Trading35k—~2.4kAutomated safety check: PassMIT
List Structurethedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist74k—~438Automated safety check: PassMIT
Bio Structural Biology Structure IoGPTomics/bioSkills1.2k1 repos~4kAutomated safety check: PassMIT

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Questions about Lens Debate

What does Lens Debate do?

Run a structural-review debate between two lenses — lowy (volatility-based decomposition) and hickey (structural simplicity) — on the current diff. Lens Debate is an agent skill from srid/emanote. Run a structural-review debate between two lenses — lowy (volatility-based decomposition) and hickey (structural simplicity) — on the current diff.

When should I use Lens Debate?

Lens Debate fits situations like: the user types /lens-debate; asks to have lowy and hickey review this; run the lens debate; debate this diff structurally.

How do I install Lens Debate in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add srid/emanote --skill lens-debate -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (.agents/skills/lens-debate in srid/emanote) into .claude/skills/lens-debate in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Lens Debate in Codex?

Run `npx skills add srid/emanote --skill lens-debate -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (.agents/skills/lens-debate in srid/emanote) into .agents/skills/lens-debate in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Lens Debate in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add srid/emanote --skill lens-debate -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/lens-debate, .gemini/skills/lens-debate, .github/skills/lens-debate and .opencode/skills/lens-debate in your project.

What does Lens Debate need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Lens Debate needs JavaScript for the scripts in its folder and the command-line tools its instructions call (git, gh and just). Our summary lists: Node.js.

Does Lens Debate access the network?

SKILL.md names 1 domain. In commands or code: kolu.dev; the agent is likely to contact it when it follows the instructions. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Lens Debate safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Lens Debate use?

Lens Debate has a licence file (the repository's licence) that doesn't match a standard licence. Read it on GitHub before reusing the skill.

How many tokens does Lens Debate use?

About 3.7k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 15k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Lens Debate?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Lens Debate: Structured Data (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars), Bio Structural Biology Modern Structure Prediction (FreedomIntelligence/OpenClaw-Medical-Skills, 3.1k stars), Investor Lenses (HKUDS/Vibe-Trading, 35k stars) and List Structure (thedaviddias/Front-End-Checklist, 74k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Lens Debate?

srid (a GitHub user) maintains it in srid/emanote, which has 963 GitHub stars. The repository holds 25 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on July 26, 2026.

Source: srid/emanote on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.