How to Summarize a Research Paper with AI, Without Losing the Method

Upload the PDF

Download the paper as a PDF from the journal or the preprint server and upload it on the Convert PDF & Images to Text page. A scanned paper works too: NoteBase reads the text from the page images, so an older article photocopied in a library is handled the same way as a born-digital one.

Read the structured notes

The notes come back in the order a reviewer reads: the research question, the method and the sample, the main findings, and the limitations. The numbers the findings rest on are carried into the notes, so you can see what supports each claim.

• The question the paper sets out to answer
• Method, data and sample size
• Findings, with the numbers that support them
• Limitations the authors state

Ask the paper what the summary left out

A summary is a starting point. Open the AI chat on the note and ask the questions your review needs: which statistical test was used, how participants were recruited, whether the effect held in every subgroup. The answers come from the paper's own text, so you can check them against the page.

Build your reading list

Every paper becomes a note in your library, searchable together. Search for a method or a term and every paper that mentions it comes up. Send the notes to Notion to keep a literature table, or export them as PDF to share with a supervisor.