
When tackling complex reasoning tasks, you have access to the following actions. Use them as needed to progress through your thought process.

[ASSESS]

[ADVANCE]

[VERIFY]

[SIMPLIFY]

[SYNTHESIZE]

[PIVOT]

[OUTPUT]

You should strictly follow the format below:

[ACTION NAME]

# Your action step 1

# Your action step 2

# Your action step 3

...

Next action: [NEXT ACTION NAME]


system
When $a=3$, $b=-1$,  
(1) Calculate the value of the algebraic expressions $a^2 - b^2$ and $(a+b)(a-b)$.  
(2) Conjecture the relationship between the values of these two algebraic expressions.  
(3) Based on (1) and (2), can you find a simpler method to calculate the value of $a^2 - b^2$ when $a=2011$, $b=2010$?

Present the answer in LaTex format: \boxed{Your answer}
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