Fact or Fiction
Fact or Fiction
Ask any question, including odd ones. You get a percentage, a clear call of more or less than 50%, the working, and the sources that produced it. If nothing matches, the score stays at 50% — nothing is invented.
Likelihood
FDNY oral histories
54%
Equal to 50% — the sources do not tip either way
The score is 54% — more than 50%. Supporting sources currently outweigh contradicting sources after quality and confidence are applied.
How 54% was calculated
Start at 50%. Move by half of the net source score after uncertainty. Net source score is 0.46 (from −1 contradict to +1 support). Uncertainty is 85%. So 50% + 50% × 0.46 × 15% remaining certainty = 54%.
Supporting sources
3
Weighted strength 0.70
Contradicting sources
1
Weighted strength 0.26
No stance yet
18
Pulls the score toward 50% · 5.31
Uncertainty
85%
Share of the file that is unlabelled or missing
Working
start at 50% + half of (net source score × remaining certainty)
0.5 + 0.5 × 0.46 × (1 − 0.85) = 0.535
This percentage is calculated from the sources listed below — it is a score, not a court finding. Official origin does not add extra weight. Independent origin does not subtract weight. Two papers from the same group are one cluster, not two independent confirmations.
Reasoning
Step 1 · Match the question
No stored question matched closely enough. Near misses: H004. Unlabelled records are not given a fake yes or no.
Step 2 · Find matching sources
21 source(s) matched the wording. 0 further source(s) already linked to the stored question were included even if they did not contain the search words. 1 matching claim(s) contributed inherited stances.
Step 3 · Assign support or contradiction without inventing
0 labelled from stored question links, 4 from claims, 0 labelled automatically (capped, marked, not saved as human review), 18 left with no stance.
Step 4 · Weight each source
Each source contributes strength = (quality / 5) × confidence × how strongly it agrees or disagrees. Support strength 0.7, contradict strength 0.26, no-stance strength 5.31. A zero on chain of custody still lowers the mean and stays visible.
Step 5 · Turn that into a percentage
Start at 50%. Move up if support outweighs contradiction, down if the reverse. Unlabelled sources shrink the movement, so a thin file stays near 50%. Working: 0.5 + 0.5 × 0.46 × (1 − 0.85) = 0.535.
Step 6 · What this number is not
This percentage is calculated from the sources listed below — it is a score, not a court finding. Official origin does not add extra weight. Independent origin does not subtract weight. Two papers from the same group are one cluster, not two independent confirmations.
What is still missing
- This question does not match a stored key question closely enough to inherit yes/no labels. Matching records stay unlabelled so the score does not invent a stance.
- 7 source(s) score zero on at least one quality check (shown on each card). Those zeros are kept visible and are not averaged away.
- 3 source(s) are unverified, inactive, or recorded as not retrieved. A missing file is a gap, not a finding against the question.
- 18 relevant source(s) have no stance yet. They increase uncertainty and pull the percentage toward 50%; they are not counted as support or contradiction.
Matching claims
- disputedCLM-033
First-responder explosion-language about the Twin Towers is evidence of demolition charges.
Sources that support this
3FDNY oral histories: multiple firefighters report explosions
New York Fire Department oral histories (released 2005 after lawsuit) · 2005-08-12
Multiple trained first responders independently described explosion-like events at the WTC site on 11 September 2001.
claim stance · Inherited from matching claim CLM-033.
MacQueen — 118 Witnesses: Firefighters' testimony to explosions (Journal of 9/11 Studies, Aug 2006)
Journal of 9/11 Studies · 2006-08-01
In 2006 MacQueen published a compilation of 118 firefighter explosion-language statements drawn from FDNY oral histories.
claim stance · Inherited from matching claim CLM-033.
Sources that contradict this
1NIST: no corroborating evidence for explosives or thermite
NIST WTC investigation FAQs (towers and WTC 7) · 2019-11-20
NIST published a negative finding on explosives and thermite as collapse causes.
claim stance · Inherited from matching claim CLM-033.
Sources with no stance yet
18Columbia 9/11 Oral History Project — holdings statement
Columbia Center for Oral History Research — September 11 Oral History Project · 2026-09-03
Columbia's 9/11 oral-history project reports five programmes, over 900 hours with over 600 people, 351 of them open, plus a 2011 book. Transcripts were not ingested.
unclassified · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
William Rodriguez: basement explosion in WTC 1 at impact time
New York Fire Department oral histories (released 2005 after lawsuit) · 2001-09-11
A WTC 1 employee in the basement described an explosion-like event at the time of the aircraft impact.
unclassified · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Complete 9/11 Timeline restored on IC911 (History Commons / Paul Thompson)
Complete 9/11 Timeline (Paul Thompson / History Commons), hosted by IC911 · 2026-09-02
IC911 hosts a restored copy of Paul Thompson's Complete 9/11 Timeline, originally at History Commons, described as cataloguing thousands of mainstream and government records.
unclassified · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Veterans History Project — Iraq War box; loc.gov 403
SHSU Library — U.S. History: Primary Source Collections Online (9/11 page) · 2026-09-03
The guide's Iraq-war Veterans History Project link did not yield files at ingest.
unclassified · zeros: contemporaneity, corroboration, chain_of_custody · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Quality zeros remain visible: contemporaneity, corroboration, chain_of_custody.
Barry Jennings and Michael Hess: explosions and being trapped in WTC 7
BBC World — Jane Standley live report of WTC 7 collapse (11 September 2001) · 2001-09-11
Jennings and Hess were trapped in WTC 7 and described explosion-like events and delayed rescue.
unclassified · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Ted Walter — Earthshaking Revelations: seismic evidence of pre-impact explosions (10 Sep 2025)
International Center for 9/11 Justice · 2025-09-10
Walter presented a 2025 talk arguing for seismic evidence of explosions before aircraft impact.
unclassified · zeros: contemporaneity · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Quality zeros remain visible: contemporaneity.
SHSU LibGuide page: 9/11 Attack, Afghan and Iraq Wars
SHSU Library — U.S. History: Primary Source Collections Online (9/11 page) · 2026-04-16
On 3 September 2026 the SHSU guide listed eight 9/11-related collections and one Iraq-war Veterans History Project link, with the annotations quoted in full_text.
unclassified · zeros: contemporaneity · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Quality zeros remain visible: contemporaneity.
Lamont-Doherty seismic records of the collapses
Lamont-Doherty / Palisades seismic records of 11 September 2001 · 2001-09-11
Regional seismometers recorded the WTC collapse events with usable timing.
unclassified · Retrieved as relevant; no inherited polarity. Unclassified mass raises uncertainty rather than inventing support or contradiction.
Topics
Day-of events, engineering questions, process failures, and foreknowledge leads.