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Panda Research Tools

Panda Research Tools

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About Panda Research Tools

Panda Research Tools is an MCP server for scholarly research and citation integrity. Its eight tools check references, search OpenAlex and PubMed, locate experts, extract PDF tables, find archived pages, and track topics using public-data Apify Actors.

Key features

  1. 01Eight scholarly research tools
  2. 02Check citations for fake or retracted papers
  3. 03Search OpenAlex and PubMed
  4. 04Find experts and extract PDF tables
  5. 05Locate Wayback snapshots and track topic trends

Use cases

  1. 01Check references for retracted or invalid citations
  2. 02Search literature and PubMed evidence
  3. 03Find researchers in a subject area
  4. 04Extract tables or locate archived pages

MCP support

Exposes eight scholarly research tools to MCP clients. Each tool runs a public-data Apify Actor on the configured Apify account.

Configuration

Local server config is the same for every client. Copy it into your client’s MCP config file.

mcp.json · Universal config
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "pandadad0214-panda-research-tools": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "panda-research-tools"
      ],
      "env": {
        "APIFY_TOKEN": "<APIFY_TOKEN>"
      }
    }
  }
}
Run commanduvx panda-research-tools
Environment variables to set
APIFY_TOKENSecretApify API token. Free token: https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations

Local servers need a runtime on your machine (e.g. Node.js 18+). Config file locations differ by client; see your client’s docs.

Packages
pypipanda-research-tools0.2.0

Tools

No tool list yet

Local servers expose tools only once running on your machine, and the maintainer has not provided a tool list.

Details

From the project README

Panda Research Tools

Give Claude, Cursor or any MCP client 8 research-integrity tools: catch fake or retracted citations, search OpenAlex and PubMed, find experts, pull PDF tables, find Wayback snapshots and track topic trends. Each tool runs one public-data Apify Actor on your own Apify account and is priced per result. Part of the Panda Federation toolkit (40 tools in four focused servers).

PyPI Latest Release Umbrella Apify Store License: MIT

Featured on Launch MCP

Part of Panda Federation

Part of Panda Federation

This project is a module of the Panda Federation — public-data tools, MCP servers, and local-first apps in one catalog. See the rest of the work, including books when they publish and the matching free or paid editions of this tool, at the official site.

Follow on X: @PandaFedHQ

How to use this

uvx panda-research-tools
  1. Get a free Apify token at console.apify.com/settings/integrations (the free plan includes $5 of monthly credit) and install uv.
  2. Add the server to your MCP client: command uvx, args ["panda-research-tools"], env APIFY_TOKEN (Cursor JSON below).
  3. Ask in plain words, e.g. "Check these 12 references for fake or retracted papers and format the good ones in APA." Start with one or two inputs and read the summary / agentSummary line before widening.
{"mcpServers": {"panda-research-tools": {"command": "uvx", "args": ["panda-research-tools"], "env": {"APIFY_TOKEN": "apify_api_YOUR_TOKEN"}}}}

For AI agents

FieldValue
PurposeFocused MCP server with 8 research-integrity tools: catch fake or retracted citations, search OpenAlex and PubMed, find experts, pull PDF tables, find Wayback snapshots and track topic trends.
Use whenA task needs verified scholarly sources: citation checks, literature or PubMed search, expert finding, PDF tables, archived page snapshots or topic trends.
Do not use whenThe task is about federal money (use panda-public-funding-tools), sales leads (panda-leads-tools) or site/email safety (panda-web-security-tools).
Installuvx panda-research-tools (stdio, Python 3.11+)
AuthAPIFY_TOKEN env var; runs bill to that Apify account.
Tools8, listed under Tools
OutputsJSON rows plus a one-line summary / agentSummary; Excel/CSV files on the Apify run.
Side effects and costStarts Apify runs; pay per result; empty runs are not charged per result; run_max_charge_usd caps each call. Read-only toward third-party sites.

Other ways to install

From the umbrella package (same tools):

uvx --from panda-federation-tools panda-research-tools

From this repo instead of PyPI:

uvx --from git+https://github.com/pandadad0214/panda-research-tools panda-research-tools

Cursor / Claude / VS Code: command uvx, args ["panda-research-tools"], env APIFY_TOKEN.

Docker (stdio, non-root). APIFY_TOKEN is required:

docker build -t panda-research-tools .
docker run -i --rm -e APIFY_TOKEN panda-research-tools

Official MCP Registry name for this stdio package: io.github.pandadad0214/panda-research-tools (server.json). That name is separate from the hosted companion io.github.pandadad0214/panda-research-mcp. Registry clients install the PyPI package with uvx panda-research-tools. The git command above stays the install path from this repo.

Use with Gemini CLI

Install this repo as a Gemini CLI extension (adds the MCP server plus a short GEMINI.md context file). Needs Gemini CLI, uv, and a free Apify token.

gemini extensions install https://github.com/pandadad0214/panda-research-tools

The extension prompts for APIFY_TOKEN on install and launches the server with uvx panda-research-tools. Gallery listing is automatic once this public repo carries the gemini-cli-extension topic and a root gemini-extension.json (crawled daily).

Tools (8)

  • reference_checker
  • citation_formatter
  • literature_search
  • pubmed_evidence_table
  • researcher_expert_finder
  • pdf_table_extractor
  • wayback_snapshot_finder
  • topic_trends_tracker

Each tool runs one Apify Actor on your account. Empty runs are not charged per result; every call is capped by run_max_charge_usd. Full schemas and prices: umbrella README.

Sibling domain servers

  • panda-public-funding-tools — Public money, filings and safety monitors: grants, contracts, SAM.gov bids, SBIR/STTR topics, SEC financials, clinical trials, Federal Register, recalls, VIN decode, EU tenders.
  • panda-leads-tools — Public leads and enrichment: NPI providers, podcasts, local businesses, hiring signals, website enrichment, team pages, trucking carriers, IRS nonprofits, building permits, new Florida, Texas, New York and Colorado businesses, H-1B sponsors, French companies.
  • panda-web-security-tools — Site, email and agent safety: SPF/DKIM/DMARC audits, AI/SEO readiness, website change monitoring, hidden AI instructions scanner, bulk domain WHOIS/expiry, broken link checker, RSS and Atom feed monitor.

Index / compatibility mega-server: panda-federation-tools (use only when you truly need every tool).

TDQS standard

New tools join this domain only while the count stays in the 3–15 band. Descriptions follow the checklist in the umbrella repo. See tdqs-standard / project docs.

Built by Panda Federation. MIT licensed.

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