Everyday AI · Module 4

Find the claims before checking them

Suggested time: 8 minutes.

A factual claim says something that evidence could support or contradict. “The room is booked” and “The total is £30” are claims. A claim can concern the past, present or future. “This change will double attendance” is also a factual claim, even though it predicts an outcome.

A suggestion proposes an action: “Consider a shorter welcome.” A suggestion may be sensible or unhelpful, but it is not evidence that the action has been approved or will work.

An unknown is a requested fact that the available evidence cannot establish. Mark it explicitly rather than guessing.

A statement of uncertainty marks a limit: “The source does not provide a start time.” That statement is itself checkable against the source. It should accurately describe the gap rather than invent a negative fact about the wider world.

Snapshot L1 A short draft to inspect

Complete fictional source:

• L1-A, coordinator note: A room request has been sent. The room is not yet booked. These notes do not give a start time.

Illustrative answer:

“The room is booked and the workshop starts at ten. Consider a shorter welcome. The notes do not name the welcome reader.”

Separate it into four parts:

1. “The room is booked”: factual claim, contradicted by the explicit statement that the room is not booked.
2. “The workshop starts at ten”: factual claim, unresolved because the time is absent.
3. “Consider a shorter welcome”: suggestion, not an approved plan or a checked outcome.
4. “The notes do not name the welcome reader”: statement about missing information, supported by inspecting the complete note.

One sentence can contain more than one claim. Split “The room is booked and has 40 chairs” into a booking claim and a chair-quantity claim. One may be supported while the other is wrong.

A recommendation can hide a claim too: “Send a reminder because it will double attendance.” “Send a reminder” is a suggestion. “It will double attendance” needs evidence. Check that second part even if you agree with the suggestion.

Confidence does not measure evidence

“Definitely,” “research proves” and “I am 99% certain” may make an answer sound reliable. They do not supply a source, a calculation or a verified passage. A confidence percentage generated in an ordinary answer should not be treated as a measured accuracy score.

Asking “Are you sure?” may prompt a useful revision, but agreement from the same assistant, or another assistant, is not independent evidence. Go back to the record, calculation or original publication.

Use three verdicts

• Supported: The relevant evidence backs the claim as worded, including its scope and conditions.
• Contradicted: Relevant evidence directly conflicts with the claim, or a checked calculation gives a different result.
• Unresolved: Evidence is absent, ambiguous, inaccessible, insufficient or conflicting without a justified way to choose.

These verdicts describe what you can establish from the evidence available for the task. “Supported by this pack” is not a guarantee that every record is correct in the real world. “Unresolved” does not mean “false.”

Pause: In “Try a shorter welcome; everyone prefers it,” what is the suggestion and what needs evidence?