Heinz von Foerster was an Austrian American scientist and polymath specialising in physics and philosophy.
Heinz von Foerster is considered as the originator of Second-order cybernetics.
Additionally, he made contributions in diverse fields including computer science, artificial intelligence, epistemology, high-speed electronics and electro-optics switching devices, memory and knowledge. He worked on cognition based on neurophysiology, mathematics, and philosophy and was called "one of the most consequential thinkers in the history of cybernetics".