Demonstration Criticism & ResponsesArticle
What Absence of Evidence Can—and Cannot—Show
A guide to preservation, sampling, visibility, expected traces, and the difference between no evidence and evidence of absence.
Question
Does absence of evidence disprove a historical claim?
Only when the claim strongly predicts that detectable evidence should exist and preservation and sampling make its absence meaningful.
The complete demonstration article below shows how a fuller answer can expose definitions, evidence, assumptions, objections, and limits.
Full explanation
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