WEBVTT

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Is it a fact

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or is it an opinion?

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Does it matter?

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Yes.

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Both are important.

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But knowing how to distinguish
between fact and opinion

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can help us to better understand
what we read and hear,

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and how we form our own opinions.

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Let's take a look.

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A fact is a statement 
that can be proven to be true.

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Facts are objetive,

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which means they are not influenced
by what someone thinks or believes.

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A fact is indisputable
and cannot be changed.

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Here are some key questions
to identify facts.

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1. Can it be measured or confirmed
with calculations or data?

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For example, two plus two equals four.

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We can add the numbers
and demostrate that this stament is true.

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2. Can it be observed? 
Can we see it happen?

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For instance, 99% of people
cannot lick ther elbow.

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This is true.

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This is a fact that can be observed.

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Research has determined

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that only one out of 100 people
can successfully complete this task.

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3. Can it be verified by primary sources,

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such as research, photographs,
newspapers and artifacts?

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Here is an example.

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Nintendo was started in 1889.

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This is a fact, because it could
be verified with many sources.

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A man named Fusajiro Yamauchi from Japan

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founded Nintendo
as a playing card company in 1889,

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and now it is one of the largest
gaming companies in the world.

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Now let's move on to opinion,

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which can sometimes be a little trickier.

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An opinion is a statement
of belief or judgement.

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Opinions express
what someone thinks or feels.

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An opinion can change.

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Let's look at some examples.

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Ice cream is delicious.

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Many people believe this, 
but some people don't.

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It is a judgement, 
and therefore an opinion.

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When we evaluate something or somebody

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we often use adjectives such as
important, beautiful, fun or difficult.

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An adjective that allows us
to judge something

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is a clue that a statement is an opinion.

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Another signal word for opinions
is the word "should".

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Here is an example.

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Everyone should learn
more than one language.

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While there may be many good reasons
to learn more than one language,

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not everyone would agree
about the personal value of doing so.

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Political views are opinions.

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Different people will have different ideas
about what society's problems are

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and how to best address them.

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Since opinion can´t 
be proven or disproven,

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there is no right or wrong answer:

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just different viewpoints.

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While opinions may be supported
by facts and evidence,

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the issue we care about
may still be up for debate.

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For example, I could say

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that going to school year round 
is better for students.

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Now there are reasons
to support this viewpoint,

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some might argue
that a shorter vacation period

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would prevent students
from forgetting what they learnt,

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or say that students often
get bored over the summer,

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or that other countries around the world
use a year-round system.

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However, we cannot prove
that the statement is true.

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There are many reasons to think
that a 10 month calendar is better.

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You could argue that students
need an extended break

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and they should be allowed to participate
in camps or other summer activities,

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or that a lack of air conditioning

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means they shouldn't be inside
a school building in the summer.

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If we look back at the statement,

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we can also identify
another signal word for opinion:

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the word "better".

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When we're comparing different things

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or we see words like "greatest", 
"best" or "better",

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it can suggest we are looking 
at an opinion statement.

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Another type of opinion is a prediction.

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Often predictions are based
on experience, knowledge or research,

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but because they are based on the future,

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we can't actually verify them today.

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Let's look at an example.

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Driverless cars will represent
10% of all cars on the road by 2026.

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That sounds both amazing and scary.

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Although many auto manufacturers are
developing self-driving car technology,

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we have no way of verifying
the statement today.

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So, it is an opinion.

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One thing to remember is that just
because we believe something to be true,

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that doesn't make it a fact.

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Let's recap what we learnt.

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A fact is a statement
that can be proven to be true.

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Can it be measured,
or confirmed with data?

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Can it be observed?

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Can we verify its truth
with other sources?

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Does it stay the same?

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If we answer "yes"
to one of these questions,

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then it means it is a fact.

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An opinion is a statement 
of belief or judgement

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that cannot be proven true.

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Does it evalute someone or something?

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Can we debate it?

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Does it make a prediction?

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Can it change?

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If you answer "yes" 
to these questions,

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it is an opinion.

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Knowing how to separate
between fact and opinion

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helps us to understand information

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and shape our own beliefs about the world.

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Try it and see if you can
use these questions

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to tell the difference in your own life.

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Subtitles by Carol Wang
Review by Ilona vd Tang