The 12 Axes of the Knowledge Spectrum

An ultra-fine-grained model adding dimensions of justification, reliability, and social context. Building on the 8 Axes, we add: Axis 9: Justified-Unjustified (knowledge requires justification vs. reliable process suffices). Axis 10: Internalist-Externalist (justification depends on internal reasons vs. external reliability). Axis 11: Individualist-Social (knowledge is individual achievement vs. fundamentally social). Axis 12: Universal-Particular (knowledge of general truths vs. knowledge of specific facts). These twelve axes generate 4096 knowledge positions. Traditional epistemology (Plato's justified true belief) is internalist (reasons matter), individualist (the knower knows), and applies to both universal and particular. Reliabilist epistemology is externalist (reliable process suffices), individualist, universal and particular. Social epistemology is social (knowledge is communal achievement), externalist often, universal and particular. The 12 Axes reveal that debates about what knowledge is—justified true belief? reliable process? social achievement?—are debates about which axes matter most.

The 12 Axes of the Knowledge Spectrum "You think knowledge is justified true belief. The 12 Axes ask: justified internally (by reasons) or externally (by reliability)? Individually or socially? Universal or particular? Plato's definition assumes answers—internalist, individualist, both universal and particular. But externalists and social epistemologists disagree. The axes show that 'knowledge' is contested because different epistemologists make different choices on these axes—not because they're confused, but because knowledge itself is multidimensional."

by Dumu The Void February 25, 2026