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Claims, Sources and Calculation

What this concept is​

Verification compares a claim with evidence that does not merely repeat the same answer. For a source claim, inspect what the source actually supports. For a numerical plan, recompute the totals. For a recommendation, inspect the assumptions and tradeoffs.

Why it matters here​

Beginners may not know enough to catch a fluent technical error. Start with tasks whose evidence is short, explicit and independently checkable, then increase scope as your own knowledge grows.

Concrete example​

Source card: “Two sessions are available: 30 minutes Monday and 45 Friday. Each includes a five-minute review.” Candidate response: “You have 75 minutes of practice plus ten minutes of review, for 85 minutes total.”

The available total is 75. Reviews consume 10 of those minutes, leaving 65 for practice. The candidate double-counted review. A corrected schedule must fit each individual block as well as the total.

Common confusion / misconception​

Asking the same assistant “Are you sure?” may produce a revision but is not independent confirmation. A real URL can support a different claim from the one attached to it. Exact numbers without a denominator or time period may still mislead.

How to use it​

Extract the factual claims. Attach each to a supplied passage, calculation or separately inspected source. Mark unsupported claims as unresolved; do not quietly fill gaps. Recalculate with a calculator or by hand and preserve the expression. If no reliable check is available, narrow the task or seek qualified help.

Check yourself​

Is “the cited page exists” enough? No. The relevant passage must support the actual claim under the stated conditions. Is one correct total enough? No; individual block constraints can still fail.

Mini drill or application​

Audit the three candidate plans in the guided lab. Score total time, per-block fit, source fidelity and action authority separately. Keep a failed criterion visible even when the writing is polished.

Read this only if stuck​

Use Claims, Sources and Uncertainty for source trails and numerical comparisons. The same evidence standard applies to human-written and AI-generated claims.

The evaluation component of AI Fluency supplies optional reinforcement; the arithmetic contract and checks on this page are original examples.