Thousands of papers, years-long projects, a finite human brain. Researchers live or die by their knowledge system. Here is the modern, mobile-friendly flow.
Reading capture
One note per paper. Title, citation, one-paragraph summary in your own words, open questions. Not a highlight dump — your summary is what you'll search later.
Literature map via graph
A knowledge graph over papers reveals the sub-field's structure faster than any reading list. Papers that cluster together are the sub-field; outliers are opportunities.
Writing as rearrangement
Academic writing is primarily a rearrangement of notes you've already taken. If your note system is good, the paper assembles itself. If it's bad, you re-read primary sources during writing — a waste.
Citation hygiene
Every note that quotes or paraphrases a paper must carry the citation. No exceptions. Retrofitting citations three years later during a thesis defence is where academic careers die slowly.
Mobile fit
Most researchers capture on laptops. But the highest-value captures — the 3am idea, the waiting-in-line insight — are mobile. A system that doesn't handle mobile capture is leaving the best ideas on the table.
About Sovereign — A privacy-first AI personal assistant that runs entirely on your iPhone. On-device LLM, zero-knowledge encryption, and a coach that learns from your own words. See how it works or visit the homepage.