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Merge pull request #177 from LLM-Coding/copilot/add-plain-english-term
feat: Add "Plain English according to Strunk & White" semantic anchor
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‎docs/anchors/plain-english-strunk-white.adoc‎

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= Plain English according to Strunk & White
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:categories: communication-presentation
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:roles: technical-writer, software-developer, consultant, educator, business-analyst
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:related: gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider, bluf, pyramid-principle
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:proponents: William Strunk Jr., E.B. White
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:tags: writing, english, clarity, style, prose, language, plain-english
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[%collapsible]
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====
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Full Name:: Plain English according to Strunk & White ("The Elements of Style")
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Also known as:: Strunk & White, The Elements of Style, Plain Style Writing
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[discrete]
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== *Core Concepts*:
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Omit Needless Words:: Every word in a sentence should serve a purpose; cut words that add bulk without adding meaning — "the fact that" → "that", "owing to the fact that" → "since"
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Use Active Voice:: Prefer active constructions over passive; active voice is more direct, vigorous, and concise — "The dog bit the man" not "The man was bitten by the dog"
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Use Definite, Specific, Concrete Language:: Prefer the particular and tangible over the vague and abstract; concrete details make writing vivid and persuasive
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Write With Nouns and Verbs:: Rely on strong nouns and verbs rather than adjectives and adverbs; the right noun or verb makes modifiers unnecessary
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Place the Emphatic Words at the End:: The most important idea in a sentence belongs at its end — the position of greatest emphasis
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Use Parallel Form:: Express coordinate ideas in similar grammatical form; parallelism aids comprehension and gives prose a pleasing rhythm
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Avoid Qualifiers:: Remove weakening qualifiers like "rather", "very", "little", "pretty" — they dilute the force of the statement
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Revise and Rewrite:: Good writing is rewriting; a first draft is a starting point, not a finished product
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Key Proponents:: William Strunk Jr. ("The Elements of Style", 1918); E.B. White (revised edition, 1959)
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[discrete]
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== *When to Use*:
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* Writing technical documentation, reports, emails, and API documentation
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* Reviewing or editing any English prose for clarity and conciseness
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* Coaching writers to reduce verbose or bureaucratic language
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* Preparing communications for broad, non-specialist audiences
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* Any writing where clarity and brevity are paramount
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[discrete]
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== *Related Anchors*:
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* <<gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider,Gutes Deutsch nach Wolf Schneider>> — the German-language equivalent of clarity-first writing principles
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* <<bluf,BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front)>> — complements plain style with a structure that leads with the conclusion
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* <<pyramid-principle,Pyramid Principle according to Barbara Minto>> — a complementary framework for structuring arguments hierarchically
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====

‎docs/anchors/plain-english-strunk-white.de.adoc‎

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= Plain English nach Strunk & White
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:categories: communication-presentation
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:roles: technical-writer, software-developer, consultant, educator, business-analyst
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:related: gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider, bluf, pyramid-principle
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:proponents: William Strunk Jr., E.B. White
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:tags: writing, english, clarity, style, prose, language, plain-english
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[%collapsible]
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====
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Vollständiger Name:: Plain English nach Strunk & White ("The Elements of Style")
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Auch bekannt als:: Strunk & White, The Elements of Style, Plain Style Writing
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[discrete]
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== *Kernkonzepte*:
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Überflüssige Wörter weglassen:: Jedes Wort in einem Satz muss einen Zweck erfüllen; Wörter, die nur Volumen ohne Bedeutung erzeugen, werden gestrichen — "the fact that" → "that", "owing to the fact that" → "since"
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Aktiv statt Passiv:: Aktive Konstruktionen sind direkter, lebendiger und prägnanter als passivische — "Der Hund biss den Mann" nicht "Der Mann wurde vom Hund gebissen"
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Konkrete und spezifische Sprache:: Das Besondere und Greifbare dem Vagen und Abstrakten vorziehen; konkrete Details machen Texte lebendig und überzeugend
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Mit Substantiven und Verben schreiben:: Starke Substantive und Verben statt Adjektive und Adverbien verwenden; das richtige Substantiv oder Verb macht Attribute überflüssig
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Wichtige Wörter ans Satzende:: Die wichtigste Aussage eines Satzes gehört ans Ende — die Position mit der größten Wirkung
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Parallele Strukturen verwenden:: Koordinierte Ideen in ähnlicher grammatischer Form ausdrücken; Parallelismus erleichtert das Verständnis und gibt dem Text einen angenehmen Rhythmus
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Abschwächende Wörter vermeiden:: Abschwächer wie "ziemlich", "irgendwie", "ein bisschen" entfernen — sie verwässern die Kraft der Aussage
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Überarbeiten und umschreiben:: Gutes Schreiben ist Umschreiben; ein erster Entwurf ist ein Ausgangspunkt, kein fertiges Produkt
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Schlüsselvertreter:: William Strunk Jr. ("The Elements of Style", 1918); E.B. White (überarbeitete Ausgabe, 1959)
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[discrete]
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== *Wann zu verwenden*:
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* Beim Verfassen technischer Dokumentationen, Berichte, E-Mails und API-Dokumentationen
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* Beim Überprüfen oder Redigieren englischer Prosatexte auf Klarheit und Prägnanz
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* Beim Coaching von Autoren zur Reduktion von wortreicher oder bürokratischer Sprache
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* Bei der Vorbereitung von Kommunikation für ein breites, nicht-spezialisiertes Publikum
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* Überall dort, wo Klarheit und Kürze an erster Stelle stehen
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[discrete]
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== *Verwandte Anker*:
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* <<gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider,Gutes Deutsch nach Wolf Schneider>> — das deutschsprachige Äquivalent zu klarheitsfokussierten Schreibprinzipien
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* <<bluf,BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front)>> — ergänzt den klaren Schreibstil mit einer Struktur, die mit der Schlussfolgerung beginnt
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* <<pyramid-principle,Pyramid Principle nach Barbara Minto>> — ein ergänzendes Framework zur hierarchischen Strukturierung von Argumenten
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====

‎skill/semantic-anchor-translator/references/catalog.md‎

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- **Proponents:** Wolf Schneider
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- **Core:** Short sentences, active voice, verbs over nouns (no Nominalstil), concrete language, no filler words — clarity-first principles for German writing
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### Plain English according to Strunk & White
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- **Proponents:** William Strunk Jr., E.B. White
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- **Core:** Omit needless words, use active voice, prefer concrete language, write with nouns and verbs — clarity-first principles for English writing ("The Elements of Style")
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### Chatham House Rule
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- **Proponents:** Chatham House
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- **Core:** Info can be used but not attributed to speaker/org

‎website/public/data/anchors.json‎

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],
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"filePath": "docs/anchors/owasp-top-10.adoc"
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},
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{
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"id": "plain-english-strunk-white",
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"title": "Plain English according to Strunk & White",
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"categories": [
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"communication-presentation"
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],
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"roles": [
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"technical-writer",
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"software-developer",
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"consultant",
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"educator",
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"business-analyst"
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],
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"related": [
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"gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider",
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"bluf",
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"pyramid-principle"
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],
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"proponents": [
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"William Strunk Jr.",
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"E.B. White"
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],
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"tags": [
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"writing",
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"english",
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"clarity",
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"style",
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"prose",
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"language",
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"plain-english"
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],
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"filePath": "docs/anchors/plain-english-strunk-white.adoc"
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},
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{
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"id": "problem-space-nvc",
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"title": "Problem Space NVC",

‎website/public/data/categories.json‎

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"gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider",
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"mece",
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"myers-briggs-type-indicator",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"pyramid-principle"
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]
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},

‎website/public/data/metadata.json‎

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{
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"generatedAt": "2026-03-12T10:09:47.494Z",
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"generatedAt": "2026-03-12T10:36:04.925Z",
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"version": "1.0.0",
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"counts": {
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"anchors": 94,
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"anchors": 95,
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"categories": 12,
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"roles": 12
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},
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"statistics": {
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"averageRolesPerAnchor": "2.98",
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"averageRolesPerAnchor": "3.00",
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"averageCategoriesPerAnchor": "1.00",
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"anchorsWithTags": 50,
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"anchorsWithRelated": 20
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"anchorsWithTags": 51,
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"anchorsWithRelated": 21
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}
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}

‎website/public/data/roles.json‎

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"jobs-to-be-done",
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"mece",
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"moscow",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"problem-space-nvc",
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"pyramid-principle",
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"regulated-environment",
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"moscow",
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"myers-briggs-type-indicator",
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"owasp-top-10",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"problem-space-nvc",
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"pyramid-principle",
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"regulated-environment",
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"gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider",
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"mental-model-according-to-naur",
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"myers-briggs-type-indicator",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"socratic-method",
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"solid-principles",
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"test-double-meszaros",
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"morphological-box",
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"mutation-testing",
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"owasp-top-10",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"property-based-testing",
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"regulated-environment",
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"rubber-duck-debugging",
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"ears-requirements",
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"gutes-deutsch-wolf-schneider",
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"lasr",
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"plain-english-strunk-white",
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"pyramid-principle",
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"todotxt-flavoured-markdown"
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]

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