Quiz 1: Subagent Concepts

Test your understanding of subagent patterns, architectures, and when to use them.

Question 1: What is a subagent?

选项

• A. A subagent is a different agent platform (like switching from Claude Code to Codex)
• B. A subagent is a skill that runs in the background while the main agent works on something else
• C. A subagent is a child agent process spawned by a parent agent to handle a subtask in isolation, then report results back
• D. A subagent is a way to run the same agent twice for redundancy

答案解析

• A — No. A subagent is a child process spawned by a parent agent within the same platform.
• B — Not quite. Subagents are full agents, not just skills. Skills are reusable workflows.
• C（正确答案） — Correct! Subagents are independent processes that solve specific subtasks and communicate results to the parent.
• D — No. Subagents are for dividing work, not duplicating it.

Question 2: What is the fan-out / fan-in pattern?

选项

• A. Fan-out/fan-in spawns multiple subagents, each handling a sequential stage; each stage waits for the previous to finish
• B. Fan-out/fan-in spawns multiple independent subagents in parallel, waits for all to finish, then combines results
• C. Fan-out/fan-in requires a supervisor agent to coordinate the subagents
• D. Fan-out/fan-in is the only pattern you should ever use

答案解析

• A — That's a pipeline pattern, not fan-out/fan-in. Fan-out/fan-in runs all subagents in parallel.
• B（正确答案） — Correct! All work happens simultaneously. Perfect for independent tasks.
• C — Not necessarily. The parent agent can manage it with wait_all() or similar.
• D — No. Different patterns suit different task structures. Pipeline and supervisor are also valuable.

Question 3: What is the pipeline pattern?

选项

• A. Pipeline pattern runs all subagents in parallel to maximize speed
• B. Pipeline pattern chains subagents sequentially, where each stage's output becomes the next stage's input
• C. Pipeline pattern requires 10+ subagents to be effective
• D. Pipeline and fan-out/fan-in are the same thing

答案解析

• A — No, that's fan-out/fan-in. Pipeline runs stages sequentially: output of stage 1 → input of stage 2.
• B（正确答案） — Correct! Pipelines are for sequential workflows like design → code → test.
• C — No. Pipelines work with any number of stages, often 3-5 is ideal.
• D — False. Fan-out/fan-in is parallel. Pipeline is sequential.

Question 4: When should you reach for subagents?

选项

• A. Use subagents when you have 10+ files to read or 3+ independent pieces of work
• B. Always use subagents if your task takes more than 1 minute
• C. Use subagents only for parallel work; never for sequential tasks
• D. Use subagents for every task; they always make things faster

答案解析

• A（正确答案） — Correct! The blog post identifies these as the strong signals for subagent use.
• B — False. Time doesn't matter. Subagent overhead kills small tasks.
• C — False. Pipeline pattern uses subagents for sequential work.
• D — No. Subagent spawn overhead makes them slower for small tasks.

Question 5: What is the supervisor pattern?

选项

• A. Supervisor pattern spawns all subagents in parallel to maximize speed
• B. Supervisor pattern has a parent agent directing multiple specialist subagents, each with different tools and expertise
• C. Supervisor pattern requires more than 10 subagents to be effective
• D. Supervisor pattern means all subagents have identical tools

答案解析

• A — That's fan-out/fan-in, not supervisor. Supervisor uses specialized agents with different tools.
• B（正确答案） — Correct! Supervisor is for when you need multiple specialized agents working on the same problem.
• C — No. Usually 2-5 specialist subagents is ideal with supervisor pattern.
• D — False. Supervisor specifically gives each subagent specialized tools for its domain.

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Summary

If you got 4-5 correct, the core subagent patterns are in place. If not, revisit the patterns lesson before moving into the hands-on workflow.

Key Takeaways

• Subagents are isolated child agents, not separate platforms or background skills
• Fan-out / fan-in is parallel; pipeline is sequential; supervisor coordinates specialists
• The best signal for subagents is independent or clearly staged work that justifies the coordination overhead

Next Steps

Next, put these patterns to work in the hands-on multi-agent workflow.