Fact or opinion

How to tell fact from opinion.

Is it a fact,

or is it an opinion?

Does it matter?

Yes.

Both are important.

But knowing how to distinguish
between fact and opinion

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

and how we form our opinions.

Let's take a look.

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

Facts are objetive,

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

A fact is indisputable
and cannot be changed.

Here are some key questions
to identify facts.

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

For example, two plus two equals four.

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

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

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

This is true.

This is a fact that can be observed.

Research has determined

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

3. Can it be verified by primary sources,

such as research, photographs,
newspapers, and other facts?

Here is an example,

Nintendo was started in 1889.

This is a fact because it can
be verifed by many sources.

A man named Fusajiro Yamauchi from Japan

founded Nintendo
as a playing card company in 1889,

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

Now let's move on to opinion,

which sometimes can be a little trickier.

An opinion is a statement
of believe or judgement.

Opinions express
what someone thinks or feels.

An opinion can change.

Let's look at some examples.

Ice cream is delicious.

Many people believe this
but some people don't.

It is a judgement,
and therefore an opinion.

When we evaluate something or somebody

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

An adjective that allows us
to judge something

is a clue that a statement is an opinion.

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

Here is an example.

Everyone should learn
more than one language.

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

not everyone would agree
about personal value of doing so.

Political views are opinions.

Different people have different ideas
about what societie's problems are

and how to best address them.

Since opinion can´t
be proven or disproven,

there is no right or wrong answer:

just different view points.

While opinions may be supported
by facts and evidence,

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

For example, I could say

that going to school year-round
is better for students.

Now there are reasons
to support this viewpoint.

Some may argue
that a shorter vacation period

would prevent students
from forgetting what they learnt,

or say that students often
get bored over the summer,

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

However, we cannot prove
that the stament is true.

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

You could argue that students
need an extended break

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

or that a lack of air conditioning means

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

If we look back at the statement,

we can also identify
another signal word for opinion:

the word "better".

When we are comparing different things or we see words
like 'greatest','best' or 'better',

it can suggest we are looking
at an opinion statement.

Another type of opinion is a prediction.

Often predictions are made on experience.

knowledge or research.

But because they are based on the future,

we can't actually verify them today.

Let's look an example.

Driveless cars will represent
10% of all cars in 2026.

That sounds both amazing and scary.

Although there are so many factors
about car technology

we have no way of verifying
the statement today.

So, it is an opinion.

One thing to remember
is that just because

we believe something to be true,

that does not make it a fact.

Let's recap what we learnt.

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

Can it be measured
or confirmed by data?

Can it be observed?

Can we verify its truth
with other sources?

Does it say the same?

If we answer yes to one of these questions

that means it is a fact.

An opinion is a statement
of believe and judgement

that cannot be proven to be true.

Does it evalute someone or something?

Can we debate it?

Does it make a prediction?

Can it change?

If you may answer 'Yes'
to these questions, is an opinion.

Knowing how to separate
between fact and opinion,

help us to understand information

and shape our own beliefs about the world.

Try it and see
if you can use these questions

and tell the difference in your own light.