science

Ken M

Ken M 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 Ken M rather than just read about it. In short: Kenneth McCarthy (born c. 1980), popularly known as Ken M, is an Internet troll known for his comments on news websites such as Yahoo! and The Huffington Post. Unlike the more common associations for the term troll on the internet, Ken's comments are usually benign, with his comments displaying a comical lack of understanding of the featured topic, while other commenters take him seriously.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Kenneth McCarthy (born c. 1980), popularly known as Ken M, is an Internet troll known for his comments on news websites such as Yahoo! and The Huffington Post. Unlike the more common associations for the term troll on the internet, Ken's comments are usually benign, with his comments displaying a comical lack of understanding of the featured topic, while other commenters take him seriously.

Background Ken M worked as a copywriter for Comedy Central and a columnist for CollegeHumor, and started posting to comments sections as Ken M in 2011 on various websites, mostly Yahoo! and The Huffington Post. He has said that his aim was to "turn a toxic space into a source of belly laughter." His absurd comments over the years made him widely considered one of the most prolific Internet trolls ever, gaining thousands of fans on Facebook, Twitter, his subreddit, and Tumblr where he posts screenshots of all his comments as HorseySurprise-Blog. Ken M was named one of the most influential people on the Internet by Time in 2016 and 'The Rembrandt of Yahoo Comment Trolling' by Uproxx.

Internet character Ken M has been described as "just an ill-informed old dude". McCarthy is an advocate of "do no harm" trolling. He has expressed his dislike for the term "troll" due to the negative connotations it carries.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Ken M

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Ken M 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 Ken M 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 Ken M 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 Ken M

In research: Ken M 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 Ken M 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: Ken M is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1980s births, American Internet celebrities, American people stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Ken M 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 Ken M in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Ken M 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 Ken M out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ken M in simple terms?

Why does Ken M 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 Ken M?

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 Ken M.