Kenneth craik

Kenneth Craik (1914-1945)

By mk14kopi

  • Birth

    Birth
    Kenneth Craik was born on March 29, 1914 in Edinburgh, Scotland.

  • Doctoral Degree Earned

    Doctoral Degree Earned
    Craik earns his doctoral degree from Cambridge University and goes on to begin fellowship at St John's College in 1941.

  • "The Nature of Explanation"

    "The Nature of Explanation"
    Written in 1943, this book outlined Craik's mental models concept explaining that the brain could create models based on current reality to help predict or determine future outcomes. This idea was the first time 'internal models' were utilized when analyzing cognitive brain functions in psychology. A great explanation of mental models can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n74cqxx9qqA CRAIK, KENNETH J. W. NATURE OF EXPLANATION. Cambridge: CAMBRIDGE U PRES, 1943. Print.

  • Appointed First Director of the Medical Research Council's Applied Psychology Unit

    Appointed First Director of the Medical Research Council's Applied Psychology Unit
    While serving as the first director of Cambridge's APU, Craik focused on, "visual problems such as glare and adaption, and also with the matching new kinds of machines to men and comparing their performances." The Department of Psychology at Cambridge later named their campus building after Craig in honor of his work there. Gregory, Richard L. "Forty Years On: Kenneth Craik's The Nature of Explanation (1943) - Richard L Gregory, 1983." 1 June 1983. Web. 24 Oct. 2020.

  • Death

    Death
    Kenneth Craik died on VE Day, May 8, 1945, at the age of 31 after a vehicle struck him while riding a bicycle in Cambridge the previous day.

  • "Theory of the Human Operator in Control Systems"

    "Theory of the Human Operator in Control Systems"
    This 1945 unfinished draft was published posthumously after Craik's death in 1947 and 1948. Craik focuses on the abilities, both psychological and physical, of machine-based beings. Craik, K. J. W. "Theory Of The Human Operator In Control Systems." British Journal of Psychology. General Section 38.3 (1948): 142-48. Print.

  • Cognitive Science born

    Cognitive Science born
    Several years after his death, Craik's writings and theories became more widely accepted as the field of Cognitive Science - the study of the precise nature of different mental tasks and the operations of the brain that enable them to be performed, engaging branches of psychology, computer science, philosophy, and linguistics as defined by Dictionary.com - was born in the 1950s. Because of his influence, many credit the late Craik with being one of the pioneers of the field.

  • "The Nature of Psychology"

    "The Nature of Psychology"
    Edited by Stephen Sherwood, this anthology of Craik's unpublished writings was published in 1966 as "The Nature of Psychology: A Selection of Papers, Essays and Other Writings by Kenneth J. W. Craik" contained theories on various topics of machine learning and decision making, as well as theories on sensory and perception functions in regards to machines. Craik, K. J. W. "Theory Of The Human Operator In Control Systems." British Journal of Psychology. General Section 38.3 (1948): 142-48. Print.