A Related Chart from Hari Titan (hstitan@yahoo.com)
| Step 1. Extract from statement(s): | Step 2. Categorize | Step 3. Investigate | Special Terms |
|
Facts (There are observers and they all agree) |
Testimony | Multiple independent witnesses? Unbiased? | Confirmed; Unopposed; Stipulated; Hearsay |
| Physical Evidence | Persistent / Temporary states | Direct; Circumstantial | |
|
Theory / Speculation (A disputed explanation or characterization; guesswork) |
Theory is Testable / Falsifiable (i.e. Conjecture) |
Does the explanation fit some, most or all the evidence; Is the explanation clear & convincing? Is the test repeatable and/or controllable? | Evidence-based; Educated guess; Faith-based; Wild Speculation |
|
Prosecution (Re: Past) |
The explanation fits most of the facts; Attributes are falsifiable but not the theory itself. | Plausible; Just Cause; Proof; Benefit of Doubt | |
| Idle Speculation | Not falsifiable and not prosecutable. | Alternate Universe | |
|
Pretense (Passing off a theory as fact) |
Misrepresentation or Make-believe or Fixed Belief | Statement known to be a theory by speaker? Listener knows to be false? | Exaggerate; Delusion |
| Ambiguity | Unlimited / Handful of meanings | Intentionally vague? Speaker open to clarification? | Rhetoric |
Related Articles:
Lambert Dolphin
lambert@ldolphin.org
Library
May 1992.