Generally, a fact is something that is the case, something that actually exists, an event which has really occurred, or information that can be verified according to an established standard of evaluation. There is a range of other uses, depending on the context. Philosophers and scientists are interested in facts because of their relation to truth.

Etymology and usage

The word fact derives from the Latin ''Factum'', and was first used in English with the same meaning: "a thing done or performed", a use that is now obsolete. The common usage of "something that has really occurred or is the case" dates from the middle of the sixteenth century.

Fact is sometimes used synonymously with ''truth'', as distinct from opinions, falsehoods, or matters of taste. This use is found in such phrases as, ''It is a fact that the cup is red'' or ''Matter of fact'', and "... not history, nor fact, but imagination."

Fact also indicates a ''matter under discussion'' deemed to be true or correct, such as to emphasize a point or prove a disputed issue; (e.g., "... the ''fact'' of the matter is ...").

Alternatively, ''fact'' may also indicate an ''allegation or stipulation'' of something that may or may not be a "true fact", (e.g., "the author's facts are not trustworthy"). This alternate usage, although contested by some, has a long history in standard English.

Fact may also indicate findings derived through a ''process of evaluation'', including review of testimony, direct observation, or otherwise; as distinguishable from matters of inference or speculation. This use is reflected in the terms "fact-find" and "fact-finder" (e.g., "set up a fact-finding commission").

Facts may be checked by reason, experiment, personal experience, or may be argued from authority. Roger Bacon wrote "If in other sciences we should arrive at certainty without doubt and truth without error, it behooves us to place the foundations of knowledge in mathematics."

Fact in philosophy

In philosophy, the concept ''fact'' is considered in epistemology and ontology. Questions of objectivity and truth are closely associated with questions of fact. A "fact" can be defined as something which is the case, that is, the state of affairs reported by a true proposition.

Facts may be understood as that which makes a true sentence true. Facts may also be understood as those things to which a true sentence refers. The statement "Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system" is ''about'' the fact Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system.

Misunderstanding of the difference between fact and theory sometimes leads to fallacy in rhetoric, in which one person will say his or her claim is factual whereas the opponent's claim is just theory. Such statements indicate confusion as to the meanings of both words, suggesting the speaker believes that ''fact'' means "truth," and ''theory'' means "speculation."

Correspondence and the slingshot argument

Some versions of the correspondence theory of truth hold that what makes a sentence true is that it ''corresponds'' to a fact. This theory presupposes the existence of an objective world.

The Slingshot argument claims to show that all true statements stand for the same thing - the truth value ''true''. If this argument holds, and facts are taken to be what true statements stand for, then we reach the counter-intuitive conclusion that there is only one fact - "the truth".

Compound facts

Any non-trivial true statement about reality is necessarily an abstraction composed of a complex of objects and properties or relations. For example, the fact described by the true statement "Paris is the capital city of France" implies that there is such a place as Paris, there is such a place as France, there are such things as capital cities, as well as that France has a government, that the government of France has the power to define its capital city, and that the French government has chosen Paris to be the capital, that there is such a thing as a "place" or a "government", etc.. The verifiable accuracy of all of these assertions, if facts themselves, may coincide to create the fact that Paris is the capital of France.

Difficulties arise, however, in attempting to identify the constituent parts of negative, modal, disjunctive, or moral facts.

The fact-value distinction

Moral philosophers since David Hume have debated whether values are objective, and thus factual. In ''A Treatise of Human Nature'' Hume pointed out there is no obvious way for a series of statements about what ''ought'' to be the case to be derived from a series of statements of what ''is'' the case. Those who insist there is a logical gulf between facts and values, such that it is fallacious to attempt to derive values from facts, include G. E. Moore, who called attempting to do so the Naturalistic fallacy.

The factual-counterfactual distinction

Factuality — what has occurred — can also be contrasted with counterfactuality — what ''might have'' occurred, but did not. A counterfactual conditional or subjunctive conditional is a conditional (or "if-then") statement indicating what ''would be'' the case if events had been other than they actually are. For example, "If Alexander had lived, his empire would have been greater than Rome". This is to be contrasted with an indicative conditional, which indicates what ''is'' (in fact) the case if its antecedent ''is'' (in fact) true — for example, "if you drink this, it will make you well".

Such sentences are important to Modal logic, especially since the development of Possible world semantics.

Fact in science

Just as in philosophy, the scientific concept of fact is central to fundamental questions regarding the nature, methods, scope and validity of scientific reasoning.

In the most basic sense, a scientific ''fact'' is an objective and verifiable observation, in contrast with a ''hypothesis'' or ''theory'', which is intended to explain or interpret facts. (For an example, see Evolution as theory and fact.)

Various scholars have offered significant refinements to this basic formulation, some of which are detailed below. Also, rigorous scientific use of the term "fact" is careful to distinguish: 1) ''states of affairs'' in the external world; from 2) ''assertions'' of fact that may be considered relevant in scientific analysis. The term is used in both senses in the philosophy of science.

Scholarly inquiry regarding scientific fact

Scholars and clinical researchers in both the social and natural sciences have forwarded numerous questions and theories in clarifying the fundamental nature of scientific fact. Some pertinent issues raised by this inquiry include: the process by which "established fact" becomes recognized and accepted as such; whether and to what extent "fact" and "theoretic explanation" can be considered truly independent and separable from one another; to what extent are "facts" influenced by the mere act of observation;

Consistent with the theory of confirmation holism, some scholars assert "fact" to be necessarily "theory-laden" to some degree. Thomas Kuhn and others pointed out that knowing what facts to measure, and how to measure them, requires the use of some other theory (e.g., age of fossils is based on radiocarbon dating which is justified by reasoning that radioactive decay follows a Poisson process rather than a Bernoulli process). Similarly, Percy Williams Bridgman is credited with the methodological position known as operationalism, which asserts that all observations are not only influenced, but necessarily ''defined'' by the means and assumptions used to measure them.

Fact and the scientific method

Apart from the fundamental inquiry in to the nature of scientific fact, there remain the practical and social considerations of how fact is investigated, established, and substantiated through the proper application of the scientific method. Scientific facts are generally believed to be independent of the observer: no matter who performs a scientific experiment, all observers will agree on the outcome. In addition to these considerations, there are the social and institutional measures, such as peer review and accreditation, that are intended to promote ''factual accuracy'' (among other interests) in scientific study.

Fact in history

A common rhetorical cliché states, ''"History is written by the winners".'' This phrase suggests but does not examine the use of facts in the writing of history.

E. H. Carr in his 1961 volume, ''What is History?'', argues that the inherent biases from the gathering of facts makes the objective truth of any historical perspective idealistic and impossible. Facts are, "like fish in the Ocean," of which we may only happen to catch a few, only an indication of what is below the surface. Even a dragnet cannot tell us for certain what it would be like to live below the Ocean's surface. Even if we do not discard any facts (or fish) presented, we will always miss the majority; the site of our fishing, the methods undertaken, the weather and even luck play a vital role in what we will catch. Additionally, the composition of history is inevitably made up by the compilation of many different bias of fact finding - all compounded over time. He concludes that for a historian to attempt a more objective method, one must accept that history can only aspire to a conversation of the present with the past - and that one's methods of fact gathering should be openly examined. As with science, historical truth and facts will therefore change over time and reflect only the present consensus (if that).

Fact in law

In most common law jurisdictions, the general concept and analysis of fact reflects fundamental principles of Jurisprudence, and is supported by several well-established standards. Matters of fact have various formal definitions under common law jurisdictions.

These include:

an element required in legal pleadings to demonstrate a cause of action;

the determinations of the finder of fact after evaluating admissible evidence produced in a trial or hearing; a potential ground of reversible error forwarded on appeal in an appellate court; and any of various matters subject to investigation by official authority to establish whether a crime has been perpetrated, and to establish culpability.

Legal pleadings

A party to a civil suit generally must clearly state all relevant allegations of fact upon which a claim is based. The requisite level of precision and particularity of these allegations varies depending on the rules of civil procedure as well as the jurisdiction. Parties who face uncertainties regarding the facts and circumstances attendant to their side in a dispute may sometimes invoke alternative pleading. In this situation, a party may plead separate sets of facts that (when considered together) may be contradictory or mutually exclusive. This (seemingly) logically-inconsistent presentation of facts may be necessary as a safeguard against contingencies (such as ''res judicata'') that would otherwise preclude presenting a claim or defense that depends on a particular interpretation of the underlying facts.

See also

Brute fact

Consensus reality

Counterfactual history

De facto

Fact-finding

Factoid

Lie

Reality

State of affairs

Truth

References

Category:Critical thinking Category:Reality Category:Units of information (cognitive processes) Category:Philosophy of science Category:Concepts in epistemology

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Coordinates	56°09′″N40°25′″N
name	Gregory and the Hawk
background	solo_singer
origin	New York, USA
genre	Acoustic, indie pop, indie folk
years active	2003–present
label	FatCat Records, Pearly Gates!
website	http://www.gregoryandthehawk.com/ }}

Meredith Godreau is an American singer-songwriter performing under the pseudonym Gregory and the Hawk. Active since 2003, Godreau initially enjoyed independent success with 2 EPs and a full length album selling a total of 15,000 copies.

Biography

Originally from Medfield, Massachusetts, Godreau moved to upstate New York when she was twelve. This was where she learned a number of instruments, including piano, clarinet, oboe, violin and viola before settling on her "$70 Christmas gift": the guitar.

Godreau then took on the pseudonym Gregory and the Hawk to avoid being pigeonholed as a singer-songwriter, despite citing her influences as Nick Drake, Liz Phair and PJ Harvey. The name was derived from her brother, Gregory, and his imaginary childhood hawk. This was when she released her demo EP, including early versions of the popular "Boats and Birds" and "Isabelle".

Boats and Birds

In 2006, Godreau released the ''Boats and Birds'' EP containing the songs "Isabelle" and "Boats and Birds". Both songs received a great amount of attention on social networking website MySpace increasing Gregory and the Hawk's popularity, but the latter took the unsigned artist to a new level.

FatCat Records

''In Your Dreams'', Gregory and the Hawk's first full length album, was released the following year and received many positive reviews. But it wasn't until a show in Godreau's native Brooklyn that FatCat Records stumbled across her. A month later she was in the studio recording her FatCat debut, ''Moenie and Kitchi'', which was released in October 2008.

Discography

Albums

''In Your Dreams'' (2007)

''Moenie and Kitchi'' (2008)

''Leche'' (2010)

EPs

''Gregory and the Hawk'' (Demo) EP (2005)

''Boats and Birds'' EP (2006)

''Huckleberry Cherry and Boules'' EP (2010)

Singles

''Ghost'' (2008)

Compilations

''The Lonesome Call of the... WHPRWHIL'', Whprwhil Records (2007)

''Nano-Mugen Compilation 2009'', Ki/oon Records (2009)

References

Category:Musical groups established in 2003 Category:American indie pop groups Category:American alternative rock musicians Category:American folk musical groups Category:American folk guitarists Category:American folk singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American rock singer-songwriters Category:American female singers Category:People from Norfolk County, Massachusetts Category:Living people