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RE: Feedback ubiquity

Posted by Charles Hansen (M) on November 21, 2017 at 10:21:06

In Reply to: Feedback ubiquity posted by 13th Duke of Wymbourne on November 20, 2017 at 23:04:29:

> > Negative feedback is part of nature < <

In my opinion this is a false canard, regularly trotted out to defend the use of negative feedback. Here is why I believe it to be false:

While it is obviously true that feedback systems are used throughout nature (eg, when the light levels increase, the pupil constricts to reduce the amount of light reaching the retina), *none* of these systems attempt to process any signals in real time, the way that is always done in electronic circuits.

Even with all of the "processing power" of the human brain, nothing works like this. An example is the process of walking. It demands that the infant learns to walk *using a process of negative feedback* to develop and train the nervous system to properly execute the "function". But in the last 5 - 10 years they have found that the complete process of walking (including maintenance of balance) is controlled by a small cluster (around 20, I believe) of neurons located at the base of the spinal cord, close to the exits of the nerves which require control.

If you can think of an example of *real-time* feedback control systems in nature, I would love to hear about it. I've tried but cannot.

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