Fact-Checking
This is what I do as a fact-checker.
I verify information by checking it against original sources. These can be numbers, names, dates, scientific claims, or anything else. I comb through articles, videos, and podcasts to check whether all the information published is supported by scientific evidence.
In addition to my scientific training, I have attended fact-checking workshops (both basic and advanced levels) offered by the Knight School of Journalism at MIT. Through these workshops, I learned how to vet claims and find reliable sources. I use this training to check my own writing, and also offer fact-checking services to clients who need them.
Of late, I have been doing some medical fact-checking, where I verify health-related inferences and claims. Some samples of such articles are below:
- Can I Take St. John’s Wort With Lexapro?
- How Calcium and Vitamin D Supplements Can Affect the Risk of Dying by Cancer and Heart Disease
- A ‘DNA diet’ may help reduce type 2 diabetes risk, new study argues
- Tempur-Pedic Mattresses: Our 2024 Review
I also fact-check science/tech scripts and videos for the PBS Terra YouTube channel. Here are links to all the videos I have checked so far:
Fascinating Fails
- How To Accidentally Invent A Color
- Anesthesia Started As A Party Drug
- How Pigeon Poop Helped Unlock the Universe’s Secrets
- How To Accidentally Save the World (with Fungus)
- Invasion of the Toxic Toads: Nature’s Most Successful Failure
- Allergies: The Science of Why Your Body Hates You
- How a Kitchen Mishap Changed Science Forever
- How Moldy Bread Can Change Your Brain
Shorts
- The First Computer Bug Was a Literal Insect
- Where did denim REALLY come from?
- The Insane History of Blood-Thinning Medication
- how the military accidentally invented your microwave
- This Discovery Was Lost for Almost 100 Years
- Why Are Leeches Used In Medicine?
- How Did Dog Fur Inspire Velcro?
- The Lab Mistake That Changed Food Forever
- How Post-its Accidentally Became a Hit
- What Was Play-Doh Originally Used For?
- The Story Of The World’s Deadliest Surgery
- Were The Salem Witch Trials Caused by a Fungus?
- The Accidental Discovery Inside Sea Urchin Poop
Hungry Planet
- How Rice is Preserving History and Rethinking Nutrition Science
- How This Disease Could Wipe Out Citrus…Unless We Stop It
- Feeding the Future: Saving Corn From Rising Temperatures
- Sweet Potatoes’ Flavor is More Complex Than You Think
- How Tomatoes are Revolutionizing Urban Farming
- Inside the World’s Only Chile Pepper Institute
Shorts
- Can we keep our aging brain SHARP with a mediterranean diet?
- Why should we care about what honeybees eat
- What Ancient Leftovers Reveal to Scientists
- Can this crop out survive corn, wheat, and rice?
- Can Eating Crickets Save The Planet?!
- The Secret Solution To Garlic Breath!
- How to make plant-based meat substitutes taste more like meat!
- Should You Wash Your Rice? Here’s The Truth
- How We Turned One Animals Poop into Luxurious Coffee
- Why and How Do We Treat Sick Bees?
Sharks Unknown with Jasmin Graham
- Something Strange Is Happening With These Leopard Sharks
- Shark “Traffic Jam”: Inside a Biscayne Bay Shark Survey
- How does a record-breaking ocean heat wave impact sharks?
- The New Technology Changing How We Track Sharks
- Can Sharks Really Smell Blood from a Mile Away?
- This Gigantic Shark is a HUGE Mystery
- These Sharks Eat Plants (And It Gets Weirder)
Shorts
- Shark Scientist Answers: Is Your Favorite Shark Movie Accurate?
- Your Jaw-Dropping Shark Questions Answered!
- Why Are Hammerhead Sharks Shaped Like That?
- The Incredible Discoveries of The Shark Lady
- Can Sharks Sleep?
- What Are Scientists Learning About Sharks?
Far Out
- What Happens When Demographics Change Forever?
- Plastic Recycling is a Myth – Here’s How We Fix That
- Geoengineering: The Riskiest Way to Save the Planet
- The Dirty Truth About Our Clean Energy Future
- Why Tree Planting Campaigns Don’t Work
- How Talking With Animals Would Change Our World
- What If Our Clothes Could Disrupt Surveillance Cameras?
- How to Turn Skin Cells Into a Baby
Overview
- Why Crocodiles Are Thriving in the Shadow of A Nuclear Plant
- How Scientists Solved the Mystery of a 300-Year-Old Megaquake
- What Happened to America’s First Megacity?
- Why This Unusual Pattern May Save the Rainforests
- How Otters Are Saving Earth’s Underwater Forests
- Earth’s History Is Hidden in These Strange Maps
- Finding the BIGGEST Reason To Feel Hopeful About Climate Change
Shorts
- What Causes These Mind-Bending Waves?
- Wait, it’s all Canadian shield?
- You’ve never seen Jupiter like this!
- What is this toxic graveyard in the desert?
- The Toxic Beach Where Giant Ships Go to Die
- What are these 10,000 mirrors in the desert?
- Swim in this lake if you want to die
- Can anyone explain this giant structure in the Sahara?
- The 6 weirdest colored bodies of water on Earth
Insectarium
- Glow of Love: The Secret Language Fireflies Use to Find Mates
- What Makes Dragonflies So Extraordinary
- Pssst: Ladybugs Have a Killer Secret
- For Your Consideration: The Incredible… Roach!
- Butterfly Effect: Can Monarchs Avoid Extinction?
- Why Bumble Bees Are the Fuzzy Heroes We Need
- How Ants Make Our Cities Healthier
- How Mantises Became Nature’s Strangest Assassins
Shorts
- Is The Cicada Double Emergence Actually A Big Deal?
- Insect Decline Impacts You. Here’s How You Can Help
- Inspirational Women In Science
Stop Saving the Planet