Instrument§

The Evidence Evaluator

Bring any paper, article or video. The Evaluator will pull out each claim, sort what was observed from what was inferred, extrapolated or assumed, grade each claim against the same rubric, and explain what would be needed to support it.

Phase 2 · Under construction

How it will work

StatusNext phase

IngestA URL, DOI, PDF, pasted text or YouTube link. Articles are fetched and parsed; videos are transcribed.
ExtractEach claim is identified, together with the evidence offered for it and its exact location in the source.
ClassifyEach claim is marked as observed, inferred, extrapolated or assumed, like a referee marking a manuscript.
GradeThe six-step rubric is applied to each claim, with reasons, and linked to the relevant claim cards.
DiagnoseThe reasoning from evidence to conclusion is checked against the fallacy catalogue. Each diagnosis quotes the passage, explains the problem and says whether it is a clear case or only possible.
ReviewEvaluations are reviewed by editors before they enter the public library, and readers can challenge them.

Diagnoses use the same labels as the rest of the site, for example . See the reasoning check.

The same engine powers the Library, where whole books, textbook units and websites are evaluated section by section, and where you can paste a passage from any of them.

Until then, every source on the claim cards carries a provisional grade. Start with the research layer of Pillar 4.

Keep it going · Support the work

Help this site keep its doors open.

Every new evaluation is a paid call to the Claude API, about 9 to 17 cents each by our estimate. Supporters make more of them possible.

What it costs to run

The Evidence Evaluator. Each new paper or article is read in full by the Claude API. Our estimate is about 9 to 17 cents per evaluation, and we are measuring the real figure. Results are saved, so each source is paid for once and then free for everyone.
Hosting and the domain. Servers, storage and the fees that keep the site online and fast.
Expert review. Every claim card starts as a draft. Having specialists in biology, geology and theology check them takes time and, in some cases, payment.
Sources. Buying books and papers behind paywalls so claims can be checked against the originals.

Why giving matters here

We have chosen not to run ads, sell your data, or put the evidence behind a paywall, because a site that asks readers to weigh evidence shouldn't be paid by someone else's agenda. That leaves reader support as the way costs get covered.

Without it, the Evaluator has to be limited to what we can personally afford, and the review of claim cards slows down. With it, more sources get examined, and corrections get made sooner.

Tell us you'd like to help →Read the details

Giving is voluntary and goes to Vital-Fill, which operates the site. Payments are handled by the payment provider on the checkout page. We never see your card number.