15. Imagine you are ordering for your roommates. You remember Laura prefers banana ice cream to chocolate. It could be a fact for it was proved by observing her behavior. However, the ice cream preference could be an opinion that shows her personal choice. While it's nice to think the world is clearly divided into matters of fact and matters of opinion, it's not always the case.
What we think are facts those things we think are true-can end up being wrong. Calling something a fact is not a promise of infallibility (无误). The famous writer, Asimov expressed this in his article The Relativity of Wrong. For him, the person who thinks the Earth is flat is wrong, and so is the person who thinks the Earth is a sphere. A fact is usually used to represent the best knowledge we have at a certain time.
Then again, calling something an opinion doesn't mean an escape to the fairyland of wishful thinking. If we think of an opinion as one person's view on a subject, then many opinions can be solid. For example, it's my opinion that science provides us with a powerful tool to help understand our place in the universe. It's not a fact that science does so, but it works for me.
But we can be much clearer in our meaning if we divide things into matters of fact and matters of opinion. Matters of fact are limited to empirical statements (实证表达), such as what the boiling point of water is. Matters of opinion are non﹣empirical statements, which include questions of value and of personal preference such as whether it's better to eat more vegetables than meat.
Matters of opinion can be
informed by matters of fact (for example, finding out that vegetables are rich in vitamins can change my food preference), but finally they are not answered by matters of fact (why does it matter to me that vegetables are rich in vitamins?).
Opinions are not just pale shadows (影子) of facts. They are judgements and conclusions. They can be the result of careful consideration in areas for which empirical research is not enough or ill﹣suited.
Facts and opinions shouldn't be put in opposition to each other, as they can both play a necessary role in our decision﹣making. But that's just my opinion, not a fact.