Key points
- Source attribution is lost in summarization unless claim-source mappings are preserved explicitly.
- Subagents output structured claim-source mappings (URL or document name, excerpt, date); the synthesis agent preserves and merges them.
- Conflicting statistics from credible sources are annotated with attribution, never arbitrarily chosen or averaged.
- Publication or collection dates are required in structured outputs so time differences are not read as conflicts.
- Reports separate well-established findings from contested ones and keep each source's own characterization and method context.
- The analysis step includes conflicting values with annotations; the coordinator decides how to reconcile before synthesis.
- Different content types are rendered appropriately: financial data as tables, news as prose, technical findings as structured lists.
Common misconceptions
- "The synthesis agent can add citations at the end." By then the attribution is gone.
- "Pick the newer source." Sometimes right, but a silent pick hides the uncertainty and the trend.
- "Average the two numbers." That produces a figure no source reported.
Watch for
Options that make the report look cleaner by dropping, averaging or silently choosing. The best answer keeps both values, both sources, both dates, and lets the reader see the disagreement.
Practice Task 5.6
Start with the free 10-question check to see where you stand across all five domains. In CCA Prep Studio, 56 practice items cover this task, each tracked toward your mastery score.