The Cybernetics of Perception – The Limits of Human Observation and the Fiction of Continuity

Why does classical physics naturally assume a continuous space and a seamless flow of time? In "The Cybernetics of Perception," this fundamental pillar of our scientific world-view is exposed for what it is neurophysiologically and information-theoretically: a fiction. Based on a strictly cybernetic 3-level model (Physis, Psyche, Mind), this treatise demonstrates that the human observational apparatus never provides a lossless mapping of reality. Every stage of the perceptual chain — from cellular sensors to neuronal storage — operates mathematically in a surjective manner. Through this irreversible data compression, exact physical individual states are lost and inevitably grouped into equivalence classes (intervals). The perceived continuity of our experience is merely a constructed illusion of the brain, designed to functionally link these quantized data packets. However, if our entire biological and technical measuring apparatus inevitably operates only in intervals, applying theoretical, continuous mathematics (points and lines) to the universe is a systematic fallacy. This work bridges the gap from biology to measure theory and establishes the indispensable epistemological foundation for a new, quantized physics: We must stop confusing the virtual reality of our brain with the true architecture of the cosmos.

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Publication Details

Journal
Knowledge Commons (Lakehead University)
Published
2026-05-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.17613/j81g0-77431
Primary Topic
Cybernetics and Technology in Society
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

The Cybernetics of Perception – The Limits of Human Observation and the Fiction of Continuity

Klaus Piontzik
Knowledge Commons (Lakehead University)
Cybernetics and Technology in Society
article

The Cybernetics of Perception – The Limits of Human Observation and the Fiction of Continuity

Klaus Piontzik
article en

Abstract

Why does classical physics naturally assume a continuous space and a seamless flow of time? In "The Cybernetics of Perception," this fundamental pillar of our scientific world-view is exposed for what it is neurophysiologically and information-theoretically: a fiction. Based on a strictly cybernetic 3-level model (Physis, Psyche, Mind), this treatise demonstrates that the human observational apparatus never provides a lossless mapping of reality. Every stage of the perceptual chain — from cellular sensors to neuronal storage — operates mathematically in a surjective manner. Through this irreversible data compression, exact physical individual states are lost and inevitably grouped into equivalence classes (intervals). The perceived continuity of our experience is merely a constructed illusion of the brain, designed to functionally link these quantized data packets. However, if our entire biological and technical measuring apparatus inevitably operates only in intervals, applying theoretical, continuous mathematics (points and lines) to the universe is a systematic fallacy. This work bridges the gap from biology to measure theory and establishes the indispensable epistemological foundation for a new, quantized physics: We must stop confusing the virtual reality of our brain with the true architecture of the cosmos.

Knowledge Commons (Lakehead University)
Pima County Health Department (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 2%
Cybernetics and Technology in Society
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