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Lessons / Part 4. Documents and data with an assistant

24 A number read from a long document is a pointer to a page

Every number from a standard comes with its page, table and quoted row, and inferred claims are listed apart and confirmed or dropped.

What people usually ask

What is the hydrotest pressure for this vessel class in the standard?

What comes back

One number, with no page or table given, and no way to tell whether it came from the row for this class or from the row above it.

Ask this instead

I have attached the standard as a PDF and a photo of the table I think applies (<table number>).
Vessel: <class>, design pressure <value and unit>, material <grade>, design temperature <value>.
For every number you give, state the page, the table number and quote the row you read it from, word for word.
Work one section at a time: section <N> first, then stop and wait for me.
Keep two lists. List A: numbers quoted from the text. List B: claims you inferred (a factor applied, a rounding, a note you took to apply by default).
Then go back through list B and, for each item, either find the clause that supports it and quote it, or drop it and say so.
If the photo and the PDF disagree, say so and use neither until I confirm which is current.

Attach: The standard as a PDF, and a photo or screenshot of the key table so the row can be read without searching.

Why it works: A number tied to a quoted row can be checked against the page in a minute, and the inferred list shows which claims still rest on nothing.

Drafted with Fable 5.1 from my notes; chosen and edited by me.