Epistemic boundary
Unknown is information.
WITNESS treats uncertainty as part of the result, not as an error to hide. If the evidence cannot justify certainty, the system should preserve that limitation.
Why confident language is dangerous.
A response can sound precise even when the underlying evidence is incomplete, contradictory, delayed, thresholded, inaccessible, or incapable of distinguishing competing explanations. Fluency does not resolve those gaps.
Uncertainty states
Unknown
The necessary evidence is not available or does not support a justified conclusion.
Inferred
The explanation is supported indirectly but is not directly observed.
Disputed
Material evidence points in conflicting directions or sources disagree.
Provisional
The conclusion is useful now but depends on reporting windows, delayed data, or evidence likely to change.
Uncertainty should change behavior.
WITNESS can use uncertainty to weaken the strength of a Finding, preserve alternatives, recommend the next evidence-gathering step, or create a Watch for the condition that would resolve the question.
WITNESS should prefer an honest unknown over a confident explanation the evidence cannot support.