Scholar Sidekick MCP vs Pfc MCP
A side-by-side look at the Scholar Sidekick MCP and Pfc MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Scholar Sidekick MCP for research work as a local process; choose Pfc MCP for research as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Scholar Sidekick MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You want tools like
verifyCitation, auditBibliography, checkRetraction.
Choose Pfc MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: No auth required.
- You want tools like
itasca_browse_commands, itasca_browse_python_api, itasca_browse_reference.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Research | Research |
| Quality signal | 63/100 · Good | 64/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | API key required | No auth required |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Required env vars | None listed | None listed |
| Verified owner | Community listing | Community listing |
| GitHub stars | 11 | 220 |
| Directory activity | 6 views 0 installs 0 upvotes | 3 views 0 installs 0 upvotes |
| Tools | 7 | 10 |
| Full listing | View Scholar Sidekick MCP | View Pfc MCP |
Tools & capabilities
Scholar Sidekick MCP tools 7
verifyCitationVerify a claimed citation against the resolved record at its identifier. Detects the dominant AI-driven fabrication pattern documented by Topaz et al. (Lancet 2026): a real, resolvable identifier (DOI / PMID / PMCID / arXiv / etc.) paired with a title that does NOT correspond to the paper at that identifier. Use when the user pastes a citation and asks 'is this real?' or 'check this DOI' — most fabricated citations resolve cleanly under doi.org but their cited title and the resolved title disagree. Single citation per call. Required: `title` plus exactly one identifier (doi, pmid, pmcid, isbn, arxiv, issn, ads, or whoIrisUrl). Optional refinements: author (first-author family name), year, container (journal). Set `screenWithLlm: true` to invoke the Stage 3 LLM screen on low-confidence mismatches (catches informal-abbreviation false positives); LLM access is gated to authenticated first-party keys and paid RapidAPI tiers — anonymous callers get 400 LLM_SCREEN_FORBIDDEN. Returns: { verdict: 'matched' | 'mismatch' | 'not_found' | 'ambiguous', confidence: 'high' | 'medium' | 'low', matched: <resolved record or null>, mismatches: [{field, claimed, resolved, similarity}], candidates: [{item, registries, score}] (when title-search ran), _provenance: {stages_run, resolved_via, registries_searched, llm_screen} }. Verdict semantics: 'matched' = claim agrees with resolved record; 'mismatch' = identifier resolves but title does not match (Topaz fabrication pattern); 'ambiguous' = identifier resolves to one paper but the claimed title matches a DIFFERENT paper found via title-search (CITADEL 'citation error' subtype — wrong identifier for a real paper); 'not_found' = neither the identifier nor the title resolves anywhere. No sibling tool overlaps: resolveIdentifier returns metadata for a known-good identifier; verifyCitation is the only tool that cross-checks claimed title vs resolved metadata. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously for the non-LLM path; the Stage 3 LLM screen requires authentication — set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) or use a paid RapidAPI tier. SCHOLAR_API_KEY also raises your rate limit.auditBibliographyVerify a WHOLE bibliography in one call — the batch counterpart to verifyCitation. Each entry runs the same fabrication check (real, resolvable identifier paired with a title that does NOT match the resolved paper; Topaz et al., Lancet 2026) plus a retraction lookup, and the tool returns a per-entry verdict table and a corpus summary. Use when the user pastes a reference list, a .bib / .ris file, or asks to 'check all these citations at once' / 'audit my bibliography' / 'which of these references are fake or retracted'. Input: EITHER `bibliography` (raw BibTeX / RIS / CSL-JSON text — format auto-detected) OR `claims` (an array of pre-parsed {title + identifier} objects), not both. Capped at 25 entries per call; excess is dropped and reported via `truncated`. `checks` defaults to ['retraction'] (pass [] to skip); `screenWithLlm` opt-in per entry (same auth gating as verifyCitation). Returns: { format, entries: [{ index, sourceKey?, status: 'ok'|'error', verdict: 'matched' | 'mismatch' | 'not_found' | 'ambiguous', confidence, matched, mismatches, retraction: { checked, doi, isRetracted, hasCorrections, hasConcern, notices } | null, _provenance }], parseErrors: [{ index, error, message }], truncated, summary: { total, matched, mismatch, ambiguous, not_found, errored, retracted } }. Reading the result: `index` is 1-BASED (entry 1 is the first reference) — do not add 1 again when reporting it. `sourceKey` is the entry's own key in the source file (BibTeX cite key, RIS `ID`, CSL-JSON `id`) and is the reliable way to point a user at the offending reference; it is absent on the claims[] path. `entries` and `parseErrors` share one index space, so a given input position appears in exactly one of them — report parseErrors as UNCHECKED, never as clean. `summary.total` counts verifiable entries only, excluding parseErrors and anything past the cap; `summary.retracted` is a separate axis from the verdict counts (an entry can be both matched and retracted), so never sum those fields. A non-zero `truncated` means the audit is incomplete — split the bibliography and call again. Per-entry leniency: one entry that fails to resolve becomes status:'error' without failing the batch. This audits citation IDENTITY (does each identifier resolve to the claimed work, and is it retracted) — it does NOT check whether a source supports the claim it is cited for. Read-only and idempotent. Works anonymously for the non-LLM path; SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) or a paid RapidAPI tier raises rate limits and enables the optional LLM screen.checkRetractionCheck whether a single scholarly work has been retracted, corrected, or had an expression of concern raised. Use when the user asks 'has this paper been retracted?' or wants to verify a paper's standing before citing it (clinical, regulatory, evidence-synthesis contexts). For multi-paper bibliography audits (clinical guidelines, systematic reviews), loop one call per identifier — the tool intentionally rejects batch input to keep retraction-status results unambiguous per work. Sourced from Crossref `updated-by` (which mirrors Retraction Watch). Resolves DOI/PMID/PMCID/arXiv/ADS inputs to a DOI before lookup; ISBN inputs always return doi=null and reason='no_doi' since books are not in the retraction graph. Single identifier per call — does NOT accept comma/newline batches; loop one call per identifier for multiple papers. Returns: { doi, resolvedFrom?, reason?, result } where result has isRetracted, hasCorrections, hasConcern (booleans), notices (array of {type: 'retraction'|'correction'|'expression-of-concern', label, doi, date, source}), and title; result is null when no DOI could be resolved and reason explains why ('no_doi'). No sibling tool overlaps this — resolveIdentifier returns metadata but not retraction status. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously against the public Scholar Sidekick API (rate-limited free tier); set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) for higher limits, or RAPIDAPI_KEY for paid RapidAPI tiers. Rate limits follow your tier; Crossref is queried server-side with its own caching.checkOpenAccessCheck whether a single scholarly work is openly accessible and where to find the best legal version. Use when the user asks 'is this open access?', 'where can I read this for free?', or wants the OA license/version before reusing or redistributing. Sourced from Unpaywall. Resolves DOI/PMID/PMCID/arXiv/ISBN/ADS inputs to a DOI before lookup; inputs that don't map to a DOI return doi=null and reason='no_doi'. Single identifier per call — does NOT accept comma/newline batches; loop one call per identifier for multiple papers. Returns: { doi, resolvedFrom?, reason?, result } where result has isOa (boolean), oaStatus ('gold' | 'green' | 'hybrid' | 'bronze' | 'closed'), title, bestLocation ({url, hostType: 'publisher' | 'repository', license, version: 'submittedVersion' | 'acceptedVersion' | 'publishedVersion'} or null), and locations (array of the same shape); result is null when no DOI could be resolved and reason explains why ('no_doi'). No sibling tool overlaps this — resolveIdentifier returns metadata but not OA status. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously against the public Scholar Sidekick API (rate-limited free tier); set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) for higher limits, or RAPIDAPI_KEY for paid RapidAPI tiers. Rate limits follow your tier; Unpaywall is queried server-side with its own caching.resolveIdentifierResolve scholarly identifiers to structured CSL JSON metadata (title, authors, journal, year, identifiers). Use when the user wants raw bibliographic data to inspect, transform, or feed into another tool — not a formatted citation. Common single-shot conversions: PMID → PMCID, arXiv → DOI, ISBN → CSL JSON, WHO IRIS URL → structured metadata. Accepts DOI, PMID, PMCID, ISBN, arXiv ID, ISSN, NASA ADS bibcode, or WHO IRIS URL, with or without prefixes (PMID:, arXiv:, ISBN hyphens, https://doi.org/...). Pass a single identifier or a comma/newline-separated batch — one round trip per call. Returns: a JSON array of CSL items, each with id, type, title, author[], issued.date-parts, container-title, DOI/PMID/PMCID/ISBN/ISSN/URL when available. Use formatCitation instead when the user wants a finished citation string in a specific style; use exportCitation when they want a downloadable bibliography file. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously against the public Scholar Sidekick API (rate-limited free tier); set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) for higher limits, or RAPIDAPI_KEY for paid RapidAPI tiers. Rate limits follow your tier; the underlying REST API caches repeated identical requests and surfaces cache state in the x-scholar-cache response header.formatCitationFormat scholarly identifiers into a finished citation in a specific style. Use when the user wants a paste-ready citation string for a manuscript, slide, message, footnote, or in-line reference. Style defaults to vancouver if unspecified; ask the user before defaulting if any ambiguity exists (e.g. 'Harvard' and 'Chicago' have multiple variants — confirm which one). Supports five hand-tuned builtins (vancouver, ama, apa, ieee, cse) plus any of 10,000+ CSL style IDs (chicago-author-date, harvard-cite-them-right, modern-language-association, nature, bmj, the-lancet, etc.). Alias and dependent-style resolution apply, so 'harvard' resolves to 'harvard-cite-them-right' and the canonical ID is reported back as styleUsed. Output defaults to text; pass output=html for marked-up HTML or output=json for structured CSL items. Accepts the same identifier formats as resolveIdentifier (DOI/PMID/PMCID/ISBN/arXiv/ISSN/ADS/WHO IRIS, prefixes tolerated), single or comma/newline-separated batch — one round trip per call. Returns: one of { text, html, items } depending on the output parameter, followed by a metadata block ({formatter: 'builtin' | 'csl', styleUsed, requestId, warnings?}) appended as a second text content item — surface this to the user when they care about reproducibility. Use resolveIdentifier instead when the user wants raw metadata to inspect or transform; use exportCitation when they want a downloadable bibliography file. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously against the public Scholar Sidekick API (rate-limited free tier); set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) for higher limits, or RAPIDAPI_KEY for paid RapidAPI tiers. Rate limits follow your tier.exportCitationExport scholarly identifiers to a bibliography file format ready to write to disk or paste into a reference manager. Use when the user wants a file (.bib, .ris, .nbib, .xml, .rdf, .csv) for Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, RefWorks, BibTeX/LaTeX, Pandoc, or Excel. Format parameter is required: bib (BibTeX — LaTeX), ris (RIS — most widely supported by reference managers), csl (CSL JSON — Pandoc/Quarto), endnote-xml, endnote-refer, refworks, medline (NBIB — PubMed round-trips, clinical workflows), zotero-rdf, csv (spreadsheet-friendly), or txt (plain-text bibliography rendered with the optional style parameter — txt is the only format that uses style; the others have their own structured shape and ignore it). Accepts the same identifier formats as resolveIdentifier (DOI/PMID/PMCID/ISBN/arXiv/ISSN/ADS/WHO IRIS, prefixes tolerated), single or comma/newline-separated batch — one round trip per call. Returns: { content: string, format: string } where content is the entire bibliography in the requested format as a single string — write it to a file (.bib/.ris/.nbib/etc.) or paste it directly into the target tool. Use formatCitation instead when the user wants in-line citation text (manuscript, slide); use resolveIdentifier when they want raw structured metadata. Read-only and idempotent — safe to retry. Works anonymously against the public Scholar Sidekick API (rate-limited free tier); set SCHOLAR_API_KEY (a free ssk_ key from https://scholar-sidekick.com/account) for higher limits, or RAPIDAPI_KEY for paid RapidAPI tiers. Rate limits follow your tier.
Pfc MCP tools 10
itasca_browse_commandsBrowse Itasca command documentation by path (like glob + cat). Navigation levels: - No command: All command categories overview - Category only (e.g., "ball"): List commands in category - Full command (e.g., "ball create"): Full documentation When to use: - You know the command category or exact command - You want to explore available commands Related tools: - itasca_query_command: Search commands by keywords (when path unknown) - itasca_browse_reference: Browse reference docs (e.g., "contact-models linear")itasca_browse_python_apiBrowse Itasca Python SDK documentation by path (like glob + cat).itasca_browse_referenceBrowse ITASCA reference documentation (syntax elements, model properties). Works across engines via the required ``software`` selector (pfc/flac/3dec). References are language elements used within commands, not standalone commands. Navigation levels: - No topic: All reference categories for the engine - Category (e.g., "constitutive-models"): List items in category - Full path (e.g., "constitutive-models mohr-coulomb"): Full documentation - Sub-item path (e.g., "plot-items zone contour"): Sub-item details When to use: - Need material/contact/joint model property names (kn, ks, fric, cohesion, friction, ...) - Need range filtering syntax (position, cylinder, group, id) - Need plot item configuration (contour, label, color-by, cut, transparency, legend) - Setting up model-assignment commands (e.g. "... cmodel assign ... property ...") - Using range filters in any command - Configuring "plot item create" commands Related tools: - itasca_browse_commands: Command syntax (e.g., "zone create") - itasca_query_command: Search commands by keywordsitasca_query_commandSearch Itasca command documentation by keywords (like grep). Returns matching command paths. Use itasca_browse_commands for full documentation. When to use: - You have keywords but don't know exact command path - Example: "ball create", "contact property", "model solve" Related tools: - itasca_browse_commands: Get full documentation for a known command path - itasca_browse_reference: Browse reference docs (e.g., "contact-models linear") - itasca_query_python_api: Search Python SDK by keywordsitasca_query_python_apiSearch Itasca Python SDK documentation by keywords (like grep). Returns matching API paths with signatures. Use itasca_browse_python_api for full documentation. When to use: - You have keywords but don't know exact API path - Example: "ball velocity", "create", "contact force" Related tools: - itasca_browse_python_api: Get full documentation for a known API path - itasca_query_command: Search Itasca commands by keywordsitasca_execute_taskSubmit a Python script file for asynchronous execution in the Itasca engine. Returns a task_id immediately; the script runs in the background. Companion tools manage the lifecycle: - itasca_check_task_status: poll output, progress, and final status - itasca_interrupt_task: cancel a running task - itasca_list_tasks: browse task history For synchronous, inline execution, use itasca_execute_code instead. While the task is cycling, itasca_execute_code shares the same __main__ namespace in the engine's main thread, so you can inspect or modify simulation state live — probe progress, tune parameters mid-run, swap callbacks, or trigger early termination via a sentinel variable. Submit with reasonable starting values and refine as the task runs. Console output from itasca.command() inside the script (table dumps, list output, command summaries) is captured into the task log alongside Python prints, visible through itasca_check_task_status. Script-writing rules: - Multi-line itasca.command("""...""") batches are normalized to one engine call per command, keeping the task interruptible mid-batch. Normalization recognizes itasca.command through its import name; call it through that name directly — rebinding via intermediate variables (`_it = itasca`) bypasses it and logs a bridge warning. - Pass each FISH definition block (`fish define` / `fish operator` / legacy bare `define`, through its terminating standalone `end`) whole, in ONE itasca.command() string; feeding one line-by-line leaves the engine blocked in interactive FISH mode until completed manually in the GUI console. Per-line loops are fine for ordinary commands. - `program call '<file>'` (.p3dat / .p2dat / .dat / ...) is supported: the bridge runs the file inline, one command per engine call, so the bridge stays reachable, the task stays interruptible, and the file's output lands in the task log command by command.itasca_check_task_statusCheck status and paginated output for a submitted Itasca task. Output combines Python prints and Itasca console output from itasca.command() calls (table dumps, list output, command summaries) interleaved in execution order. Use skip_newest / limit to paginate, or filter to keep only matching lines.itasca_list_tasksList tracked Itasca tasks with pagination.itasca_interrupt_taskRequest graceful interruption of a running Itasca task.itasca_execute_codeExecute Python code synchronously in the running Itasca engine process. Returns stdout and an optional result variable immediately. Code runs in the engine's main thread, sharing the same __main__ namespace as any running task — side effects persist and are immediately visible to the task on its next cycle. The tool stays responsive while a task submitted via itasca_execute_task is cycling (calls interleave at cycle gaps), so use it as a live REPL — nothing has to be pre-scripted into the task up front. Typical uses: - Query model state and read Itasca command output: itasca.command('ball list') etc. — table dumps, list output, and command summaries are captured and interleaved with Python prints in execution order - Live inspection and tuning during a running task: check forces or contact statistics, modify parameters, swap callbacks, set sentinel variables the task reads each cycle - Create and export plots: itasca.command('plot ...') Environment: the engine's embedded Python interpreter (Itasca 9+ → Python 3.10, pre-9 → Python 3.6 or older; the product+version is encoded in sys.executable, e.g. PFC900). When unsure, check sys.version_info before relying on newer syntax. Code-writing rules (shared with itasca_execute_task): - Multi-line itasca.command("""...""") batches are normalized to one engine call per command, keeping the bridge reachable mid-batch. Normalization recognizes itasca.command through its import name; call it through that name directly — rebinding via intermediate variables (`_it = itasca`) bypasses it and the output carries a bridge warning. - Pass each FISH definition block (`fish define` / `fish operator` / legacy bare `define`, through its terminating standalone `end`) whole, in ONE itasca.command() string; feeding one line-by-line leaves the engine blocked in interactive FISH mode until completed manually in the GUI console. Per-line loops are fine for ordinary commands. - `program call '<file>'` (.p3dat / .p2dat / .dat / ...) is supported: the bridge runs the file inline, one command per engine call, so the bridge stays reachable, the run stays interruptible, and the file's output arrives command by command. Synchronous semantics: the request blocks until the code finishes or hits the timeout (default 10s, max 600s), and output is returned in full. The call is not tracked by itasca_list_tasks and cannot be interrupted mid-execution. For cancellable, pollable, or background work, submit via itasca_execute_task instead.
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Scholar Sidekick MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"mlava-scholar-sidekick-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"scholar-sidekick-mcp@latest"
]
}
}
}
Pfc MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"yusong652-pfc-mcp": {
"command": "uvx",
"args": [
"itasca-mcp"
]
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Scholar Sidekick MCP is categorized under Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pfc MCP belongs to Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Scholar Sidekick MCP for research work and Pfc MCP for research.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Scholar Sidekick MCP is listed as free. Auth: api key required. Pfc MCP is listed as free. Auth: no auth required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add mlava-scholar-sidekick-mcp and yusong652-pfc-mcp as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Scholar Sidekick MCP has a quality signal of 63/100 (Good) with 6 views, 0 installs and 11 GitHub stars. Pfc MCP has 64/100 (Good) with 3 views, 0 installs and 220 GitHub stars.