# Paper Figure Contract

> Use when planning, auditing, or generating publication-quality scientific figures, including panel-evidence maps, figure contracts, Nature-style figure logic, SVG export, editable text, semantic palettes, and caption checks.

- Skill: `fengmo11/paper-figure-contract` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 6 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add fengmo11/paper-figure-contract`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/fengmo11/paper-figure-contract/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: fengmo11 (https://skillmd.com/u/fengmo11)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/fengmo11/paper-figure-contract

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# Paper Figure Contract

Use this skill before drawing or revising a manuscript figure. The goal is to make every figure a scientific evidence container, not decoration.

## Inputs

- Manuscript claim or result to support.
- Source data paths or tables.
- Desired figure number and target venue.
- Existing figure draft if available.

## Workflow

1. Write the central scientific claim for the whole figure.
2. Assign each panel one unique scientific question.
3. Map each panel to source data and manuscript claim.
4. Select chart type based on evidence, not aesthetics.
5. Define statistics, sample size, error bars, and comparisons.
6. Choose palette semantics and legend strategy.
7. Specify export requirements: SVG primary, PNG preview, PDF/TIFF if venue needs it.
8. Draft the caption with evidence boundaries.
9. Run the redundancy and traceability audit.

## Figure Gate

- No panel duplicates another panel's scientific question.
- Every panel has source data.
- Every visual claim appears in the manuscript or caption.
- Text remains editable in SVG.
- Numbers in caption are traceable.
- Palette meaning is consistent across panels.
- Palette choice is named and checked for accessibility and grayscale readability.

## When To Read References

- For chart selection, read `references/chart-selection.md`.
- For visual style, read `references/style-gate.md`.
- For scientific color palettes, read `references/palette-system.md` and `../../data/scientific_palettes.json`.