In this discussion, we will talk about what makes a text believable, how we determine whether or not it is true, and how the author persuades us that it is true.

First, read the two attached documents: Passage A and Passage B–a total of four pages. Passage A consists of two articles from the Weekly World News, and Passage B is an excerpt from E.O. Wilson’s book The Diversity of Life. links to four PDF files down below.

Next, discuss which of these two texts is true/believable and why. Also, discuss the techniques the writer of each text uses to persuade the reader that the writer is speaking the truth.

your second paragraph answer Also should include answer for :

What is the difference between a theory and a hypothesis?

Does figurative language makes something untrue?

Can something be true, even though we may not have facts to support it?

What is the difference among belief, opinion, fact, and the truth?

Each of us will post at least two original comments and one response to another person’s comment.

student 1 INDIANA (reply student answer what you think)

Passage A is less believable than passage B because passage B is backed by science while passage A is backed by speculation. Passage A writes about controversial topics that can easily be faked or stemmed from gossip and false stories. The family who had a body in their home for over 80 years could have easily concocted a story for publicity. The final sentence of that story says that the body is being studied by university scientists. This is brief and there is no more information than that. The author writes that he spoke to family members about it, and describes how the body has not decomposed whatsoever in order to persuade readers that his story is true. The canals on Mars are even less believable. The image presented to the press that showed canals on mars could have easily been faked. The sources that the image and the information are coming from are also not reliable; a physicist and a UFO researcher who have no close ties to NASA. To top that off, a NASA spokesman denied the charges. Again, the author uses what is almost certainly false proof and a bit about how NASA is deceiving us in order to make readers believe his article. Although there is a lot of speculation about NASA keeping information from us even in the present, it is safe to say that this article is also not believable.

The second article is a lot more believable because it holds a lot of scientifically proven information. It talks about experiments to prove that their findings are factual. It explains how species migrate and how the continents shifted millions of years ago. It is based on information that everyone knows to be true. Information that can be proven with millions of years of records of fossils. It talks about experiments that have already taken place and have been observed. The author uses facts to create his article, making it so that he does not have to convince his readers that what he is saying is true. Readers will just deduct that the information is true because it is factual information.