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Birth
Kenneth Craik was born to James Craik and Marie Sylvia Craik, 29 March 1914 in Edinburgh , Scotland. He began his education at Edinburgh Academy. Craik aged 17, continued his education at The University of Edinburgh. -
Cambridge University 1936-1940
In the Fall of 1936 Craik began his studies at the Cambridge Psychological Laboratory. His undergrad work revolved around "visual adaptation". His research developed on the understanding of the human eye and it's response to light. In 1940 Craik earned his Ph.D. He continued improving his dissertation including developing new scientific instruments used for measuring sensory and motor functions. He became a Fellow of St. John's College. -
World War 2
World War 2 pulled Craik into a period of National service. Craik had previous interest in applying his work to aviation, and he went on to develop several military technologies. He worked on developing tech still used today such as night vision, glare reduction technology, and radar screens. Craik developed and constructed a flight simulator known as the "Cambridge Cockpit. He was also responsible for the "Control of Velocity Task" still used today by the RAF selection battery. -
The Nature of Explanation (1943)
Dr. Craik only written work also came during World War 2. In 1943 he published "The Nature of Explanation". His writing expressed general thoughts relating some processes of human thought to those processes of his day's analogue computers. Craik also pioneered the philosophical thought of "mental models". Craik says the mind creates small "mental" models of our surroundings in order to make predictions of our actions. https://youtu.be/dKRZu4yffTs -
Craik's Hypothesis
"My hypothesis then is that thought models, or parallels, reality—that its essential feature is not
'the mind', 'the self, 'sense data', nor propositions but symbolism, and that this symbolism is
largely of the same kind as that which is familiar to us in mechanical devices which aid thought
and calculation" - Craik 1943 -
Craik's View of "Positive" Science
Craik's introduction in "The Nature of Explanation" gives his insight into the scientific method.
" The positive sciences have introduced their own methodology - induction supported by experiments to test hypothesis. The fundamental feature of such procedure is that it is never necessary to be sure that the condition have been defined with complete exactness and finality - indeed it is recognised that this is impossible." -
Death
Dr. Craik's life was cut short when he was killed in an vehicle vs. bicycle accident.
