Look for structural parallels across inputs during…

During synthesis, look for structural parallels and shared dynamics across inputs rather than topical overlaps, because topical overlaps produce aggregation while structural parallels produce synthesis.

When This Fires

During synthesis sessions when laying out multiple notes (Lay out multiple notes in parallel visual access…) and looking for connections
When connections between notes feel forced or obvious — likely topical rather than structural
When you want to produce genuinely new insights rather than reorganized summaries of existing ideas
Complements Lay out multiple notes in parallel visual access… (parallel layout) with the cognitive search strategy for what to look for

Common Failure Mode

Topical clustering disguised as synthesis: "I synthesized my notes on habits, productivity, and time management." If the "synthesis" is just a summary of what all three topics say, it's aggregation. Genuine synthesis would identify a structural pattern that runs through all three: "All three domains share the principle that environmental design outperforms willpower-based approaches — the mechanism is reducing decision load at the point of action."

The Protocol

(1) When scanning notes in parallel (Lay out multiple notes in parallel visual access…), consciously shift your search pattern from "What topics overlap?" to "What structures, dynamics, or mechanisms appear across multiple notes?" (2) Structural parallels to look for: Shared mechanisms (same causal process in different domains), Shared dynamics (same pattern of change over time), Shared constraints (same limiting factor appearing in different contexts), Shared failure modes (same type of breakdown across different systems). (3) When you spot a structural parallel, write it as a cross-domain principle: "Both X and Y exhibit [pattern] because [shared underlying mechanism]." (4) Test the synthesis: does it produce an insight that wasn't available from any single input alone? If yes, it's genuine synthesis. If it's just a summary of one input applied to another's topic, it's aggregation. (5) The most valuable syntheses connect notes from different domains — that's where structural parallels are most surprising and most informative.