# Meta-Pattern Recognition

> Spot patterns appearing in 3+ domains to find universal principles

- **Type:** Skill
- **Install:** `agentstack add skill-obra-superpowers-skills-meta-pattern-recognition`
- **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior
- **Seller:** [obra](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/obra)
- **Installs:** 0
- **Category:** [Agent Skills](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/agent-skills)
- **Latest version:** 0.1.0
- **License:** MIT
- **Upstream author:** [obra](https://github.com/obra)
- **Source:** https://github.com/obra/superpowers-skills/tree/main/skills/problem-solving/meta-pattern-recognition

## Install

```sh
agentstack add skill-obra-superpowers-skills-meta-pattern-recognition
```

Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent.

## About

# Meta-Pattern Recognition

## Overview

When the same pattern appears in 3+ domains, it's probably a universal principle worth extracting.

**Core principle:** Find patterns in how patterns emerge.

## Quick Reference

| Pattern Appears In | Abstract Form | Where Else? |
|-------------------|---------------|-------------|
| CPU/DB/HTTP/DNS caching | Store frequently-accessed data closer | LLM prompt caching, CDN |
| Layering (network/storage/compute) | Separate concerns into abstraction levels | Architecture, organization |
| Queuing (message/task/request) | Decouple producer from consumer with buffer | Event systems, async processing |
| Pooling (connection/thread/object) | Reuse expensive resources | Memory management, resource governance |

## Process

1. **Spot repetition** - See same shape in 3+ places
2. **Extract abstract form** - Describe independent of any domain
3. **Identify variations** - How does it adapt per domain?
4. **Check applicability** - Where else might this help?

## Example

**Pattern spotted:** Rate limiting in API throttling, traffic shaping, circuit breakers, admission control

**Abstract form:** Bound resource consumption to prevent exhaustion

**Variation points:** What resource, what limit, what happens when exceeded

**New application:** LLM token budgets (same pattern - prevent context window exhaustion)

## Red Flags You're Missing Meta-Patterns

- "This problem is unique" (probably not)
- Multiple teams independently solving "different" problems identically
- Reinventing wheels across domains
- "Haven't we done something like this?" (yes, find it)

## Remember

- 3+ domains = likely universal
- Abstract form reveals new applications
- Variations show adaptation points
- Universal patterns are battle-tested

## Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

- **Author:** [obra](https://github.com/obra)
- **Source:** [obra/superpowers-skills](https://github.com/obra/superpowers-skills)
- **License:** MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.

## Pricing

- **Free** — Free

## Security capabilities

Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access:

- **Network access:** no
- **Filesystem access:** no
- **Shell / process execution:** no
- **Environment & secrets:** no
- **Dynamic code execution:** no

*"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.*


## Versions

- **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source.

## Links

- Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-obra-superpowers-skills-meta-pattern-recognition
- Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/obra
- Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse

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Listed on AgentStack — the marketplace for AI agent skills and MCP servers. Every listing is security-reviewed. Creators keep 70%.