scientific-slides
Build slide decks and presentations for research talks. Use this for making PowerPoint slides, conference presentations, seminar talks, research presentations, thesis defense slides, or any scientific talk. Provides slide structure, design templates, timing guidance, and visual validation. Works with PowerPoint and LaTeX Beamer.
npx skills add LeonChaoX/qinyan-academic-skills --skill scientific-slides --agent claude-code
Same command for any agent — swap --agent for codex, cursor, copilot.
Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.
What it does
Guides the agent to produce scientific slide decks and presentations, focusing on structure, design templates, timing guidance, and visual validation for talks. It supports both PDF slide generation and PowerPoint workflows, and targets research talks, seminars, defenses, and grant pitches. It promotes visuals over text, citations, and professional design.
How it works
- Plans each slide content before generation (titles, key points, visuals).
- In Default Workflow (PDF): generates each slide image with Nano Banana Pro, then combines images into a PDF. Steps include: plan deck, generate slides, and combine to PDF. It enforces a Formatting Goal for color, typography, and consistency, and requires attaching previous slides to maintain style.
- For content slides, it repeatedly prompts with detailed content, citations at the bottom, and formatting instructions. It includes explicit instructions to attach figures from the working directory for results or diagrams, and to list and attach all relevant figures prior to generating results slides.
- In PPT Workflow: generates visuals with --visual-only for embedding, then uses a PPTX skill to assemble slides with separate text.
- The workflow requires clearly formatted prompts, including a NO-decorative, minimal, professional design; citations; and consistent styling across slides.
When to use it
Use when preparing conference talks (5-20 minutes), seminars (45-60 minutes), thesis defenses, grant pitches, journal club presentations, or research talks at institutions or companies. It emphasizes visuals, high-quality figures, proper citations, and a narrative structure.
What it can touch
- Interacts with Nano Banana Pro via python scripts (e.g., scripts/generate_slide_image.py) to produce slides and visuals
- Combines slides into PDF using slides_to_pdf.py
- In PPT workflow, uses generated visuals as inputs for the PPTX skill to assemble slides with separate text
- Attaches images/files using --attach to incorporate figures and data charts
Caveats
- Relies on external tools (Nano Banana Pro, OpenRouter) and specific scripting conventions
- Requires careful input of formatting goals and citations in prompts
- Only describes supported workflows and does not guarantee specific outputs beyond described steps
# Scientific Slides ## Overview Scientific presentations are a critical medium for communicating research, sharing findings, and engaging with academic and professional audiences. This skill provides comprehensive guidance for creating effective scientific presentations, from structure and content development to visual design and delivery preparation. **Key Focus**: Oral presentations for conferences, seminars, defenses, and professional talks. **CRITICAL DESIGN PHILOSOPHY**: Scientific presentations should be VISUALLY ENGAGING and RESEARCH-BACKED. Avoid dry, text-heavy slides at all costs. Great scientific presentations combine: - **Compelling visuals**: High-quality figures, images, diagrams (not just bullet points) - **Research context**: Proper citations from research-lookup establishing credibility - **Minimal text**: Bullet points as prompts, YOU provide the explanation verbally - **Professional design**: Modern color schemes, strong visual hierarchy, generous white space - **Story-driven**: Clear narrative arc, not just data dumps **Remember**: Boring presentations = forgotten science. Make your slides visually memorable while maintaining scientific rigor through proper cita
- Overview
- When to Use This Skill
- Slide Generation with Nano Banana Pro
- Default Workflow: PDF Slides (Recommended)
- PPT Workflow: PowerPoint with Generated Visuals
- Nano Banana Pro Script Reference
- generateslideimage.py
- slidestopdf.py
- Prompt Writing for Slide Generation
- Full Slide Prompts (PDF Workflow)
- Visual-Only Prompts (PPT Workflow)
- Visual Enhancement with Scientific Schematics
- Core Capabilities
- 1. Presentation Structure and Organization
Title slide (first slide - establishes the style) Content slide with citations (attach previous slide for consistency) Background slide with multiple citations RESULTS SLIDE - Attach actual data figure from working directory RESULTS SLIDE - Multiple figures comparison METHODOLOGY SLIDE - Attach existing diagram Combine all slides into a PDF presentation python scripts/slides_to_pdf.py slides/*.png -o presentation.pdf Generate a figure for the introduction slide Generate a diagram for the methods slide
What does the scientific-slides skill do?
Build slide decks and presentations for research talks. Use this for making PowerPoint slides, conference presentations, seminar talks, research presentations, thesis defense slides, or any scientific talk. Provides slide structure, design templates, timing guidance, and visual validation. Works with PowerPoint and LaTeX Beamer.
How do I install it?
Run `npx skills add LeonChaoX/qinyan-academic-skills --skill scientific-slides --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.
Where does this skill come from?
From LeonChaoX/qinyan-academic-skills, a repository with 759 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.
Is a popular skill a good skill?
Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.