European Union’s Tractatus Quanticus Revises World as Facts, From Some Viewpoint

Published on July 10, 2026, a collaborative effort by Mikołaj Sienicki of the Polish, Japanese Academy of Information Technology and Krzysztof Sienicki of the Chair of Theoretical Physics of Naturally Intelligent Systems signals the emergence of what the authors term a New Tractatus Program. This program reconsiders foundational questions about reality and knowledge through the lens of both quantum mechanics and the study of consciousness, building on Wittgenstein’s Tractatus but challenging its classical underpinnings. Tractatus Quanticus specifically revises Wittgenstein’s opening claim by defining “the world as what is the case from some perspective,” a shift away from the notion of a perspective-free description of reality. The researchers propose that conscious experience itself is best understood not as a mystery, but as “an integrated, temporally thick, operationally accessible perspective,” linking the physical world and subjective experience in a novel way.

The program’s authors, alongside Jenann Ismael and Huw Price, authored Against Totalitarianism, an interpretive introduction used with the program, and argue that the pursuit of a complete, objective inventory of reality is not only unattainable but conceptually flawed. Instead, they propose a “post-classical philosophy of partiality,” where reality is not abolished, and knowledge is always situated within specific contexts of access and evidence. The program does not aim to prove a new ontology, but rather organizes arguments around a common grammar of perspective-dependence, coupling, record, and evidential limitation.

The recent publication of articles signals a growing convergence of thought challenging traditional notions of objective reality and prompting a re-evaluation of foundational philosophical claims. This shift fundamentally alters the pursuit of complete description, as the authors contend that a perspective-free account of reality isn’t merely unattainable, but potentially physically meaningless, suggesting that all descriptions are inherently situated within a specific framework of interaction. Jenann Ismael and Huw Price also authored Against Totalitarianism, framing this as a challenge to the idea of a single, closed totality. The article does not claim that relational quantum mechanics is the only viable interpretation of quantum theory, but instead develops the philosophical consequences of the relational reading. Its aim is programmatic rather than demonstrative; it does not prove a new ontology, but organizes a family of arguments around disciplined perspective-dependence. Instead of a universe revealing itself neutrally, reality becomes a network of perspectives and the relationships between them.

This collaborative effort builds upon Niccolò Covoni and Carlo Rovelli’s Tractatus Quanticus and extends into the realm of consciousness with Tractatus de Conscientia, all interpreted through the framework presented in Jenann Ismael and Huw Price’s Against Totalitarianism. This is not a descent into subjectivism, however, as the authors define a perspective as “a physical structure of interaction and correlation,” not merely a subjective viewpoint. Read together, these texts point toward a post-classical philosophy of partiality: reality is not abolished, but de-absolutized; consciousness is not mystified, but constrained by access, coupling, memory, and evidence; and the limits of language become inseparable from the limits of perspective.

Recent publications are reshaping how scientists and philosophers approach the fundamental nature of reality, with a program gaining traction. This program, detailed in works like Tractatus Quanticus and Tractatus de Conscientia, challenges the long-held assumption of a perspective-free, objective world, instead proposing that observation and existence are inextricably linked to specific viewpoints. The collaborative effort extends beyond theoretical physics, directly addressing the complexities of consciousness itself. This approach treats conscious experience neither as a mysterious substance nor as mere behavior, but as an integrated, temporally thick, operationally accessible perspective. The implications of this shift are profound, suggesting that our understanding of both the physical world and subjective experience requires acknowledging inherent limitations in complete description. By focusing on the conditions under which meaningful claims can be made, the New Tractatus Program aims to clarify the boundaries of knowledge and the limits of representation, offering a nuanced alternative to traditional, absolutist views of reality and consciousness.

The impulse to comprehensively map reality, a cornerstone of much philosophical and scientific endeavor, faces a pointed challenge from a newly articulated program. Dubbed the “New Tractatus Program,” this collaborative effort, stemming from work in quantum mechanics and consciousness studies, proposes a fundamental shift in how we approach description and objectivity. Rather than seeking to define consciousness directly, the researchers focus on its accessibility. They are revisiting the structure of Wittgenstein’s Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus as a method for disciplined inquiry, emphasizing the inherent limitations of perspective. The Tractatus form, with its numbered propositions and emphasis on logical dependence, serves as both a tool for philosophical compression and a warning against metaphysical illusions arising from the pursuit of absolute descriptions.

The very notion of objective reality is undergoing a rigorous re-evaluation, spurred by a collaborative effort revising foundational philosophical tenets through the lens of modern physics. This articulation signals a departure from centuries of assuming a perspective-free description of the universe is both possible and desirable. Researchers are now positing that facts aren’t independent entities but values arising within these interactions, meaning attributing a fact necessitates occupying or reconstructing a specific perspective. The article does not claim that relational quantum mechanics is the only viable interpretation of quantum theory; it instead develops the philosophical consequences of the relational reading. Its aim is programmatic rather than demonstrative; it does not prove a new ontology, but organizes a family of arguments around disciplined perspective-dependence.

The core revision of Wittgenstein’s foundational claim, replacing “the world is the totality of facts” with “the world is everything that is the case from some perspective,” signals a deliberate move away from classical ontological frameworks. This perspective-dependence extends to the very nature of objectivity, which is no longer seen as inherent to objects but as emerging from stable relationships between these perspectives. The article does not claim that a complete description is impossible, but rather that the concept itself may lack physical meaning, as the relational interpretation of quantum mechanics suggests. The program aims to organize arguments around disciplined perspective-dependence, acknowledging that what can be said must be said from a specific location, by a particular system, and within a defined range of distinctions.

Rather than seeking to define consciousness directly, the researchers note that conscious experience is treated neither as a mysterious substance nor as mere behavior, but as an integrated, temporally thick, operationally accessible perspective. The article does not attempt to derive a new ontology from quantum mechanics, nor to solve consciousness by definition; its more modest aim is to clarify a common grammar of perspective-dependence, coupling, record, and evidential limitation. The team’s work suggests that attributing consciousness necessitates acknowledging “some coupling between the investigated system and an evidential channel.” By emphasizing the role of observation, interaction, and accessible evidence, the framework offers a structured way to discuss consciousness across physics, cognitive science, and philosophy without relying on speculative assumptions. The work provides a conceptual foundation for future interdisciplinary research into the relationship between information, observation, and conscious experience.