Accordion Interactive

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Facts

Facts are statements that can be proven. Authors use facts as evidence to supports claims.

10 For such efforts to succeed, careful attention must be paid both to genetics and habitat. There is no point in bringing back the baiji dolphin, for example, if the Yangtze River in China remains polluted and overfished. But conservation efforts can work. Fishes can bounce back when we stop overfishing. Both the Maine haddock and Washington state coho salmon have. The reforesting of the East Coast of the U.S. shows that when farms go away, woodlands return. Then coyotes, deer, turkey and other wildlife move back in. The animals and plants of the Amazon rain forest have benefited from Brazil's efforts to stop deforestation.

In this excerpt, several facts or easily verifiable statements are made:

The Maine haddock and the Washington state coho salmon have been saved from extinction.
The East Coast has been reforested.
Coyotes, deer, turkey, and other wildlife have moved back into the woodlands of the East Coast.

Reasoned Judgements (supported claims)

Reasoned judgments are claims that are supported by facts and research findings. Authors develop their reasoning to support their claims by including factual or research-based evidence in the text.

11 And amazingly, paleoecologists have shown that 20 out of 21 large mammals in India — from leopards to muntjac deer — have survived there for the past 100,000 years. All that time, they've lived alongside one of the largest human populations on the planet.

In this excerpt, the author writes that certain species are able to live “alongside one of the largest human populations on the planet.” This statement, supported by the research from the paleoecologists, further advances the author’s claim that we can change the future. The author cites a specific example, which is the survival of the 20 out of 21 large mammals in India. Because the author continues to develop the claim with evidence, it is a reasoned judgment.

Speculation (unsupported claims)

Speculation is an unsupported claim. Sometimes authors make claims that are not supported by facts or research. They present an idea that they want the reader to accept, even if they do not have research or facts to support it. As a reader, you must be aware of these types of claims as you evaluate a text and make judgments of your own as to the validity of the author’s statements.

12 To avoid the sixth mass extinction we will probably have to push harder for conservation. Endangered species may need to be moved to help them deal with a changing climate. Think re-wilding: reintroducing species like wolves or beavers that were once in a certain ecosystem but have since disappeared. Aggressive conservation might also mean killing off newcomer species to preserve or make room for local plants and animals; in New Zealand, killing off local rats have helped kakapo parrots survive.

In this excerpt, the author claims that we need to “think re-wilding” and gives some examples that appear to be the author’s own ideas. The author suggests reintroducing species or killing off newcomer species. The author does not prove that both of these methods have been effective. The claim made in this paragraph and the suggestion about reintroduction of species is speculative.