A physical basis for sensory perception

Kenneth H. Norwich

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2014, vol. 414, issue C, 61-75

Abstract: It is argued that the process of perception takes origin within physics itself. A simple, physical model of a biological sensory receptor unit, a unit which mediates perception at its most elemental level, is developed. This model will be not just a detector of sensory signals (like a light meter or sound level meter), but will transduce these signals to the level of consciousness. The properties of this physical model of the sensory receptor unit are drawn from classical physics. Because of its simplicity, the receptor model allows for perception of only discrete quantities of incident signal energy. My primary goal in presenting this reduced model of perception is to teach concepts without the need for detailed anatomy or physiology. Using the simple mathematical properties of the receptor model, we are able to derive a number of the empirical equations of sensory science. Since the idea has been advanced that the process of perception, at a fundamental level, belongs to physics whose validity is universal, it is suggested that the “laws” of perception of the world manifested by organisms anywhere within the universe will be similar to the laws we observe here on earth.

Keywords: Biological theory; Sensory function; Physical biology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:414:y:2014:i:c:p:61-75

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2014.07.032

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