Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 18, 2026

Whole-brain Segmentation and Change-point Analysis of Anatomical Brain MRI—Application in Premanifest Huntington's Disease
Published on: June 9, 2018
Points and lines inside human brains
Arturo Tozzi1, James F Peters2,3
11Center for Nonlinear Science, University of North Texas, 1155 Union Circle #311427, Denton, TX 76203-5017 USA.
Abstract:
Starting from the tenets of human imagination, i.e., the concepts of lines, points and infinity, we provide a biological demonstration that the skeptical claim "human beings cannot attain knowledge of the world" holds true. We show that the Euclidean account of the point as "that of which there is no part" is just a conceptual device produced by our brain, untenable in our physical/biological realm: currently used terms like "lines, surfaces and volumes" label non-existent, arbitrary properties. We elucidate the psychological and neuroscientific features hardwired in our brain that lead us humans to think to points and lines as truly occurring in our environment. Therefore, our current scientific descriptions of objects' shapes, graphs and biological trajectories in phase spaces need to be revisited, leading to a proper portrayal of the real world's events: miniscule bounded physical surface regions stand for the basic objects in a traversal of spacetime, instead of the usual Euclidean points. Our account makes it possible to erase of a painstaking problem that causes many theories to break down and/or being incapable of describing extreme events: the unwanted occurrence of infinite values in equations. We propose a novel approach, based on point-free geometrical standpoints, that banishes infinitesimals, leads to a tenable physical/biological geometry compatible with human reasoning and provides a region-based topological account of the power laws endowed in nervous activities. We conclude that points, lines, volumes and infinity do not describe the world, rather they are fictions introduced by ancient surveyors of land surfaces.
Related Concept Videos
Anatomy of the Brain: Ventricles
Brain Imaging
These technologies include computerized axial tomography (CAT or CT scans), positron-emission tomography (PET scans), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and Transcranial Magnetic...
Cerebrum: Anatomical Overview II
Organization of the Brain
Hindbrain
The hindbrain, located at the base of the brain, plays a vital role in regulating automatic processes that sustain life. It includes the medulla oblongata, which is essential for...
Cerebral Hemispheres
Anatomy of the Brain: Major Regions
The cerebrum is the largest section of the brain and divides into left and right hemispheres, separated by a deep fissure. The cerebral outer layer of grey matter — the cerebral cortex — comprises elevations called gyri and shallow groves called sulci. The inner portion of white matter includes long nerve fibers known as axons, which connect...

