What It Means To Know

To know means to be able to predict.

In a given situation whats its behavior will be. 

 

If you can (correctly) predict behavior of your subject then you know your subject.

If you cannot (correctly) predict behavior of your subject then you don't know your subject.

Prediction is litmus test of knowledge. Its litmus test means its the only reliable test in existence.

There are two axes of your knowledge. How much you can predict and how accurate.

How much you can predict is about how many situations you can predict your subject's behavior in.

How accurate you can predict is about how accurately you know your subject.

 

Knowing a thing is knowing its aspects / properties, and interactions between those aspects / properties.

More aspects you know of a thing more interactions between those aspects you know. More of these you know more situations you can predict behavior of the thing in.

More accurately you know the aspects of a thing more accurate your prediction about the thing will be. Your prediction always fall in a range, that range would be as much narrow as accurate you know aspects of the thing. 

Lets suppose you come to know through newspaper that a certain player in national football team is good as goalkeeper. You can now predict his behavior in a football match, in the role of a goalkeeper. You cannot, however, say how he will perform as a forward. You don't know anything about that aspect of him - his ability to play as a forward - so you cannot make prediction about it. 

You also cannot predict his behavior in a restaurant, you know nothing about his eating habits. All you can predict about him is limited to his aspects you know. 

How much your predictions are correct - how much they match with reality - is another matter. Just because you can make predictions don't means they have to be correct. 

To have correct predictions you have to know in detail what you know. You have to be more accurate, in your knowledge about the aspects you know.  

Lets suppose you come to know that a person is a medical doctor. If you don't know sharp enough about the aspect - as in is he a generalist or a specialist - you cannot tell accurately enough how he will behave, in a given situation. If a patient with eye problem come to him you can predict that he will prescribe a pain killer or some general medicine, but you cannot predict will he be able to provide proper medical care. He may or he may not, depending on his specialty and on whether or not he has a specialty. He can provide some medical care, thats as much as you can tell.  

Summary

1. There is only one test of knowledge: Ability to predict behavior. 

2. More you know about a thing, better your predictions about it are. Your knowledge has two dimensions. 

First is how many aspects / properties you know of the thing. More you know more situations you can make predictions about the thing's behavior in.

Second is how accurate you know the aspects / properties. More sharp your knowledge is about the aspects, more accurate your predictions will be. This dimension is about narrowing the range in your predictions.