Editing:Nature of claim

The nature of a claim is a category into which a claim is organized. Such natures include:

• Theoretical
  • Definitional - An axiomatic claim which does not require evidence or proof.
  • Deductive - A claim which is the result of logical conclusion from first principles / axioms.
  • Inductive - A generalized claim arising from an observed pattern.
  • Speculative - A claim about possible futurities, or unrealized realities.
    • Example 1: 'X will happen'.
    • Example 2: 'X would have happened if Y had not happened'.
• Factual
  • Scientific - A claim for which evidence can be reproduced. New evidence can be created to support the claim.
    • Example: an experiment to confirm gravitational acceleration of Earth as between 9.764 metres per second to 9.834 metres per second.
  • Historical - A claim for which evidence cannot be reproduced. The amount of evidence that exists for the claim is limited.
    • Example: personal correspondence between people which proves a relationship, or conspiracy. If the record of correspondence is destroyed, then this evidence of the relationship is lost, and cannot be reproduced.
• Ethical
  • Religious - Thou shalt not because God forbade it.
  • Legal - Thou shalt not because the courts forbade it.
    • Example: The dereliction of one's obligation to satisfy the terms of a contract. (Note: claims about 'responsibility' to act or not to act should be considered as legal claims; 'responsibility' should be determined by an examination of legal law and contract concerning a particular claim of 'responsibility').
  • Morally nihilistic - Thou shalt not because I forbade it.