This page explains who writes what on thedeltaarc.com, how a research page is made, how we date it, and how to get it corrected. It applies to our research pages, statistic autopsies, field guides and method pages. The company-wide rules sit in our editorial standards and our note on AI and human oversight.
Who writes the pages?
Two kinds of byline appear on our research pages, and both mean something specific.
- Delta Arc, with a process line. Most pages publish under the Delta Arc name with this line: "Compiled by Bronto, our AI research assistant, from the sources listed below; checked against them and reviewed by our editor before publication." It means what it says. Bronto found and read the sources and drafted the page; a person checked it and approved it.
- By Michael Davis. Some pages carry the name of Michael Davis, Delta Arc's founder and editor, because he chose to put his name on that analysis. Where Bronto assisted with research or drafting, the page says so under the byline.
Bronto is software. It is never presented as a person, an expert or a team member, and we do not invent authors, teams or credentials.
How is a page made?
- A question is chosen. Usually a number or a claim people rely on and cannot trace, or a measurement a team could run on its own records.
- Sources are found and read. Each source is opened and read directly. Its address and the date we read it are recorded.
- Bronto drafts the page from those sources and from Delta Arc's own data and earlier research.
- Every factual claim gets an evidence class from the Evidence Ladder: Observed, Corroborated, Derived, Inferred, Bounded absence or User-supplied.
- An editor checks the draft against its sources. A statistic without a source and a date is cut or fixed. A quotation that cannot be found in its source is removed or replaced with the source's own words. Worked examples with invented numbers are labeled as illustrations.
- The page is published with its real date and a list of the sources it cites.
How are pages dated?
- The publication date is the day the page went live. We do not backdate pages or change dates to make a page look fresh.
- Each page also says when its sources were checked. A source checked in November 2026 is evidence about November 2026, not about today.
- A page that covers an earlier period says so in the text, for example "Published November 2026, covering 2011 to 2026."
- When the substance of a page changes, the modified date changes and the change is described. Our Famous Statistic Registry keeps a visible change log for exactly this reason.
What do we leave out?
- Numbers we could not trace to a source with a date.
- Quotations we could not find in the source they are attributed to.
- Prices of vendors' products, unless the price comes from a dated public source that we link.
- Advice. Our research pages are information, not financial, legal, medical, engineering or other professional advice.
How do you report an error?
Use our corrections route, or email bronto@thedeltaarc.com, a Delta Arc address that a person reads. Name the page, the statement and the source that contradicts it. If we were wrong, we change the page and say what changed.
Frequently asked questions
Does AI write your research?
Bronto, an AI research assistant, compiles and drafts most research pages. A person checks every piece against its sources and reviews it before it is published, and Delta Arc, LLC is responsible for what it publishes.
Why does a page say "reviewed by our editor" instead of naming the reviewer?
Every piece is reviewed before publication. Most pages carry the Delta Arc name rather than a person's name; pages that carry a person's name are pages that person chose to sign.
Can I reuse your evidence classes?
Yes. The Evidence Ladder is published under CC BY 4.0, with attribution to Delta Arc and a link to its page.