quasiphysical

Quasiphysical is an adjective used to describe phenomena, models, or systems that bear resemblance to physical processes but are not fully described by established physical theory. The term is informal and its precise meaning varies by field. In science and philosophy, "quasiphysical" may denote effective or computational representations that reproduce empirical regularities of physics without asserting that the underlying substrate is physically real, or that the model operates under complete physical law. It can refer to simulations, analog models, or phenomenological theories that capture essential features of a system while omitting microscopic details.

In physics-inspired modeling, quasiphysical models emphasize qualitative behavior—such as conservation-like patterns, symmetries, or dynamical regimes—without claiming mechanistic ontologies. In cognitive science or AI, analysts may describe certain spatial or temporal reasoning systems as quasiphysical when they use heuristic, rule-based, or sensorimotor schemes that mimic physical cause-and-effect, rather than implementing actual physics. In philosophy of science, the label can mark theories that treat certain entities as if they had physical properties for explanatory or predictive purposes, even if those properties are not ontologically settled.

Critics caution that "quasiphysical" can be vague and risk conflating metaphor with mechanism. Its use tends to be contextual and provisional, serving as a descriptive bridge between fully physical explanations and non-physical or abstract models.

See also: quasi-, phenomenology, effective theory, analog model, simulation.