Write your first note

This tutorial turns one verified finding into a note you can retrieve and evaluate later. The finished note will identify the finding, link its source, and record your interpretation.

What you need

• An Atlas project with at least one processed source.
• A specific finding, claim, or question worth keeping.

If you do not have a finding yet, ask a grounded question first and verify one citation.

Why the title matters

Before you open the note editor, name the claim, result, or open question the note records. A topic label alone will be difficult to distinguish from nearby notes.

Good titles:

• "Why the benchmark excludes small studies"
• "Evidence for retrieval reducing hallucinations"
• "Open questions about the evaluation method"

Weak titles:

• "Notes"
• "Paper 1"
• "Chat answer"

A specific title makes notes findable in search and chat weeks later.

1. Create the note

Open the project and create a new note. Enter the title you chose.

2. Write the finding in your own words

Start with two or three sentences in your own words. Record what the source says and why the finding matters to your project. Keep long quotations in the evidence section or return to the linked source when you need the full passage.

Example:

## Finding

The paper argues that retrieval improves answer reliability mainly by constraining the model to source passages, not by making the model itself more accurate.

Short, clear findings are easier to reuse when you return to a project after a break.

3. Add the source reference

Type @ in the note editor and select the source from the picker. This creates a direct link from the note to the source.

Then add a short quote or passage reference so you can return to the original text:

## Evidence

- Source: @[source name]
- Relevant section: Introduction, paragraph 3
- Key passage: "..."

Prefer a short quote and a reference over a long paste.

4. Write your interpretation

Add two or three sentences that explain why the evidence matters for the project:

• Does this support or challenge your research question?
• How does it compare with other sources you have read?
• Is it strong evidence or a lead worth following up?

This interpretation is what makes the note more useful than the source alone.

5. Add follow-up tasks if needed

Use a task list for open questions or next steps:

## Follow-ups

- [ ] Compare with the results from @[other source]
- [ ] Check whether this applies to non-English data

Check your result

Your note should have:

• A specific title that describes the finding.
• A claim written in your own words.
• An @ mention linking to the source.
• One or more sentences of interpretation.

Next steps

• Connect notes to sources and chats: Use mentions in chat and notes
• Learn the note editor: Note editor
• Import existing notes: Import Markdown notes