The Detective’s DeskEvan Reed
Proposed deduction
“The return day is Thursday.”
MEDIUM · CASE FILE
A return on the right day
Medium · IVY TRAVELLING LIBRARY
A borrowed folio must be returned after a stated number of elapsed days. Four librarians wrote proposed return weekdays. Also reconstruct the review register: it records who examined which source, independently of whether their later proposed answer is correct. Review slots describe order, not travel or clock times.
Read the case file below, or open the interactive desk to examine records, keep notes and submit your reasoning. These are the case materials, without the solution.
Your assignment
Who calculated the correct weekday?
- The analytical records answer the analytical question; worksheet records establish the review reconstruction. Candidate proposals and supplementary recollections are claims to test.
- There are 3 ordered events. Use each listed person, location and item once in its column. “A immediately before B” means A is in the row directly above B, with no row between them.
- 4 verified records support the complete submission. Keep the separate context note out of the proof.
- Supplementary recollections are context unless a task explicitly asks you to test one. Keep verified reconstruction records separate from untested claims.
People and accounts
Bela Shore
Proposed deduction
“The return day is Sunday.”
Ciro Lake
Proposed deduction
“The return day is Saturday.”
Dena Bell
Proposed deduction
“The return day is Monday.”
Case records
Read each record on its own terms. A claim made by a person is different from a fact established by an independent record.
LINKED RECORD
Counting convention
The borrowing day counts as day zero. Weekdays repeat every seven days. No holiday or closure shifts the due date.
This resolves the counting convention.
CONTEXT NOTE
Folio cover
The folio has a red cloth cover and a brass clasp.
The cover does not affect the due date.
PRIMARY RECORD
Loan record
The folio was borrowed on a Thursday. It must be returned exactly 17 days later.
This supplies the starting weekday and elapsed-day count.
RECONSTRUCTION RECORD
Review register
This is the same investigation’s document review record. There are 3 ordered events, labelled Review 1, Review 2, Review 3. Each listed person, location and item occurs exactly once. These slots describe record order, not times from the analytical problem.
- The event reviewed by Evan Reed occupies slot 1 (Review 1).
- The event at Reading desk occurs earlier than the event reviewed by Ciro Lake, without claiming they are consecutive.
- The event at Intake counter is the same event as the event involving “Folio cover”.
Use each column’s choices exactly once. Verified relationships govern the board; proposed answers and later recollections do not override them.
RECONSTRUCTION RECORD
Review cross-check
The relationships below were verified independently. “A immediately before B” means A is in the row directly above B, with no row between them. Keep relationships from all worksheet sources together. The following later recollections are claims to test, NOT verified facts. Exactly one disagrees with the reconstructed board; this alone is not proof of deliberate deception.
- The event at Review bench occupies slot 1 (Review 1).
- The event involving “Loan record” occurs immediately before the event at Reading desk (consecutive rows, with no event between them).
Use each column’s choices exactly once. Verified relationships govern the board; proposed answers and later recollections do not override them.
Questions to resolve
Reconstruct the file or item order through the verified register.
Whose supplementary location recollection conflicts with the board?
Use the interactive case desk to select your finding and cite the records that support it. The answer is checked there, and your progress stays in your browser.
Build your finding
Compare the records with each account. Work out what the evidence establishes, then separate that finding from anything it does not prove.