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Cybernetic Aspects of the Nervous System and Sense Organs

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Human Physiology

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Abstract

The field of cybernetics is concerned with the processes of communication and regulation. The theoretical structures on which it rests — information theory [12] and control theory [6] — were originally formulated in the context of technology, but their contribution to biology is steadily increasing. The application of these methods to living systems (called biocybernetics in Europe) provides a readily comprehensible, and frequently quantitative, description of biological functions; in many cases it deepens our understanding of the underlying relationships. Because so many processes of communication and control in organisms involve the nervous system, the biocybernetic approach has been emphasized most strongly in the areas of neurophysiology and sensory physiology [1, 2, 6, 10]. In the following sections, examples from these areas are used to introduce the elements of cybernetics.

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References

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Authors
  1. M. Zimmermann
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Physiologisches Institut der Universität, Röntgenring 9, D-8700, Würzburg, Fed. Rep. Germany

    Robert F. Schmidt Ph. D.

  2. Physiologisches Institut der Universität, Saarstraße 21, D-6500, Mainz, Fed. Rep. Germany

    Gerhard Thews

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© 1983 Springer-Verlag Berlin · Heidelberg

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Zimmermann, M. (1983). Cybernetic Aspects of the Nervous System and Sense Organs. In: Schmidt, R.F., Thews, G. (eds) Human Physiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-96714-6_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-96714-6_15

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-96716-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-96714-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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