Observers as Agents: Relational Epistemology from Physics to Ecology

Key Points

MAIN FINDING: The study introduces an observer-based epistemology that challenges traditional notions of objectivity.
KEY EVIDENCE: It shows that knowledge is shaped by perspective, with observers actively constructing coherent accounts of reality.
APPROACH: The research synthesizes insights from various disciplines, including physics, ecology, and cognitive science.
SIGNIFICANCE: This work advances our understanding of knowledge construction and its implications across scientific domains.

Abstract

The ideal of objectivity as observer-independent truth has shaped scientific thought since early modern times. Yet contemporary science reveals that all knowledge is perspective-bound: embedded, embodied, and enacted observers participate in constructing coherent accounts of reality. This work develops a synthetic, observer-based epistemology that unifies insights from physics, chemistry, biology, cognitive science, ecology, and philosophy, showing how structured intersubjective mechanisms allow perspectival integration into scientifically valid knowledge across domains.

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Gordana Dodig-Crnković (Tue,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/689a0933e6551bb0af8ce4d3 https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202507.1287.v1