science

KK thesis

KK thesis is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand KK thesis rather than just read about it. In short: The KK thesis or KK principle (also known as epistemic transparency or positive introspection) is a principle of epistemic logic which states that "If you know that P is the case then you know that you know that P is the case." This means that one cannot know that P is, if one does not know whether one's knowledge of P is correct. Its application in science can be expressed in the way that it must not only justify i…

Key takeaways

KK thesis belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect KK thesis to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of KK thesis from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The KK thesis or KK principle (also known as epistemic transparency or positive introspection) is a principle of epistemic logic which states that "If you know that P is the case then you know that you know that P is the case." This means that one cannot know that P is, if one does not know whether one's knowledge of P is correct. Its application in science can be expressed in the way that it must not only justify its knowledge claims but it must also justify its method of justifying. The principle is also described as knowledge-reflexivity contention.

Principle In formal notation, the principle can be stated as: "Kp→KKp" (literally: "Knowing p implies the knowing of knowing p"). It is said that the wide acceptance of the thesis steered many philosophers of science towards skepticism since the thesis features infinite regress and that to know is interpreted as "to know with certainty that one knows". The principle also holds that informational independence has epistemological consequences. An application of the principle may involve Hume's skepticism, which holds that it is not possible to know the induction hypothesis needed to determine the derivative knowledge that P from what is already known. This finally leads to the Humean skeptical conclusion if it is attained using KK hypothesis. An account goes as far as saying that the thesis is false due to these reasons since any argument that depends upon it is unsatisfactory. It is also said that the thesis had been disputed since the introduction of the epistemic logic by Jaakko Hintikka in 1962. There are contemporary epistemologists who pointed out that skepticism can be rejected by rejecting the KK principle but to do so means one is also rejecting the idea of knowledge.

Acceptance While major philosophers of the past (Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Schopenhauer) endorsed the principle, in the beginning of the 21st century the acceptance of the KK thesis widely varies between epistemologists. Some reject it outright: Daniel Greco (who might be supporting the thesis) says that principle had "seen better days", and Louise Antony speaks of it as "roundly rejected". Most externalists also reject the thesis, but statements by internalists, while not explicitly declaring acceptance, contain supportive language. Timothy Williamson presented a "very influential" attack on the KK principle in 2000 in his book "Knowledge and its Limits".

History The KK thesis has been associated with the notion of the infallibility of knowledge since ancient philosophers sometimes characterized the latter according to the former's terms. Plato's view on infallibility, for example, can be approached according to its framework, particularly concerning his position stated in Theatetus that truth can only be attained by infallibly knowing it. Jaakko Hintikka, argued that the plausibility of the KK thesis turns upon the acceptance of a strong notion of knowledge and that it is also in part constitutive of that notion. He traced the thesis' earliest iteration in Plato's Charmides and the Book of Lambda of Aristotle's Metaphysics. He also cited examples drawn from other points of philosophical history, citing the works of Augustine, Averoes, Thomas Aquinas, and Baruch Spinoza, among others. In response to the critique about the implausibility of the KK thesis, Hintikka stated that it is not an important point because what matters is that the principle is able "to capture a strong sense of knowledge". Modern formulations of the thesis sometimes include qualifications requiring, for example, "normal conditions for psychological self-knowledge".

See also Certainty Circular argument Epistemic closure Infallibilism Self-reference

Notes and references

Sources Azzouni, Jody (2020-10-15). "Usage Traps in the Language of Iterated Knowledge Attributions". Attributing Knowledge. Oxford University Press. pp. 171–205. doi:10.1093/oso/9780197508817.003.0006. ISBN 978-0-19-750881-7. Cresto, Eleonora (2012-04-03). "A Defense of Temperate Epistemic Transparency". Journal of Philosophical Logic. 41 (6). Springer Science and Business Media LLC: 923–955. doi:10.1007/s10992-012-9225-7. ISSN 0022-3611. JSTOR 41810059. S2CID 254738258.

External links KK thesis at PhilPapers Fieser, James; Dowden, Bradley (eds.). "KK thesis". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. ISSN 2161-0002. OCLC 37741658.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with KK thesis

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what KK thesis claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to KK thesis before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about KK thesis ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of KK thesis

In research: KK thesis appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses KK thesis in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: KK thesis is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Concepts in epistemology, Epistemic logic, Principles, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for KK thesis outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study KK thesis in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what KK thesis means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain KK thesis out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is KK thesis in simple terms?

Why does KK thesis matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study KK thesis?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on KK thesis.