How to Distinguish Facts From Opinion

Copper Mountain College (CMC) invites the community to attend a free academic conference titled: What is really real? Distinguishing Facts from Opinion. The conference will take place on April 30, 2022, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm on the CMC campus in the 100 Quad or join us on zoom. Visit www.cmccd.edu for more information.

The Conference will bring together a variety of topics and esteemed speakers that will focus on educating the CMC campus community as well as the Morongo Basin about the multi-faceted issues related to distinguishing facts from opinions, myths, beliefs, and stereotypes.

Presenters and panelists will address topics including Integral Meta-Theory, postmodernism, liberalism, the political aspects of truth claims, fake news, myths surrounding domestic violence, the role statistics plays in finding probable truth, pseudoscience, ghosts, myths about childhood, and how journalists and social media administrators distinguishing local facts from gossip, rumor, and misinformation.

Among the honored speakers: Rob Ruiz Ed.D., Fulbright scholar and former Director of Forensics at University of La Verne will serve as keynote speaker; Noah Giansiracusa, PhD author of “How Algorithms Create and Prevent Fake News”; and Catherine Svehla, PhD, host of the Myth Matters podcast, will present “When a Myth is a Lie That is True. ” Chloe Allred, instructor and artist, and Dr. Emily Hu, therapist and trauma specialist, will co-present on myths about trauma and representations of grief in art.

In addition, San Bernadino County Supervisor Paul Cook will explain how public officials evaluate information; Michelle Zaccaria from the Morongo Basin Health District will discuss vaccinations; and Craig Dicht of the Bighorn-Desert View Water Agency will present on the quantity, quality, and costs of water in the California High Desert.

CMC’s mission is to provide educational opportunities for diverse desert communities and beyond through a comprehensive curriculum and support services that demonstrate a passion for the success of every individual student. Copper Mountain College offers high-quality, affordable instruction that enables students to attain mastery in basic skills and career development, as well as building pathways to associate degrees, certificates, university transfer, and personal enrichment.

For more information on the conference, please contact Academic Affairs at 760.366.3791.