Cite 3 Sources

Remember in school when your English teacher told you to cite three sources on your paper? Well, your teacher was trying to prepare you for the real world - when you hear the news or read an article you should look for other sources to back it up.

As a mathematician I can publish a paper full of research, but in order for it to have any credibility it needs to be peer - reviewed. In other words, other mathematicians should read and correct or approve of my work.

Scrolling through Facebook or watching your favorite news network may be a good way to find out what's going on in the world, but is it really reporting the facts? Spend a few moments researching the topic on the web and ask yourself a few questions:

1. Are there other news sources with similar information?
2. Are these news sources citing credible sources? [If everyone is using the same source be sure to double check their work too.]
3. Is the author or news reporter a reliable source of non-biased news? [e.g. does he/she tend to report facts.]
4. Could this be a joke? [The Onion is not a reliable news source and is known for satire - there are others just like them, so it doesn't hurt to double check.]
5. Double check the date on the information.

One of Politifact's truth-o-meter icons.

Last, but not least, check out one of the fact checking entities:
FactCheck.org
Snopes.com
PolitiFact.com
The Washington Posts fact checker

Or you can start there.

The above fact checking organizations get paid to do all the research (which saves the typical consumer tons of time). They provide reliable links to documents, articles, videos, etc. that back up their research. Follow them on Twitter for daily fact checking claims to help you decide what to believe.

Most of the above guidelines came from Politifact.org in an article titled How to Spot Fake News.

Thanks for reading and please leave your comments, questions, feedback!

A Piece of History as VP is Required to Cast Vote in Confirmation of Sec. of Ed.

History was made this morning as Vice President Pence was required to cast the deciding vote to confirm Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. The Senate was split down the middle, 50-50, as two republican senators listened to their constituents and voted against their party's nominee.

As stated in my previous blog post, Democrats held the floor for 24-hours in an attempt to convince just one more republican senator to vote no in the confirmation hearing. Unfortunately, their efforts did not have an effect and the votes were cast as predicted.

I was able to watch some of the session prior to the vote and several senators spoke about their public school experiences. One senator stuck out to me, Sen. Mazie Hirono (D - Hawaii), spoke about coming to America and not knowing any English. The public school system and teachers helped her learn English and encouraged her love of reading. Not only was Senator Hirono an immigrant but she is a product of public schools - she has a classic American story - and now serves her country representing her constituents of Hawaii.

Many of my concerns for Betsy DeVos' nomination are stated in my blog post Department of Ed. - Secretary of Education.

The Scary Mommy blog also posted some ways that you can get involved and stay informed as Betsy DeVos takes her place.

One thing to keep in mind if you are a Colorado resident is that vouchers have been deemed unconstitutional in the state. In 2015 the Supreme Court of Colorado said the Douglas County voucher program "violated a plank of the State Constitution that explicitly prevents public money from going to schools 'controlled by any church or sectarian denomination whatsoever,' "
Here is the New York Times report on this issue: Colorado court rules use of public funds for private use is unconstitutional 

Colorado has many non-profit charter schools that offer an alternative choice for students in need.

Thank you for reading!

Secretary of Ed - Dems Holding the Floor

Tomorrow the Senate votes on whether or not to instate Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education. Tonight Democratic senators are holding the floor to present their reasons as to why she should not be given the job.

Watch the live feed on C-SPAN2 or here:
https://www.c-span.org/video/?423606-1/us-senate-democrats-hold-senate-floor-night-devos-vote-looms&live=

Call your senators, "light up the phones," to tell your senator to vote against her. See my previous blog post for more information.