

Thoughts on free will: We are all functions - feross
http://www.feross.org/thoughts-on-free-will/

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jervisfm
This is the age-old philosophical discussion on whether free will exists or
whether it is just an illusion (the so-called free-will vs. determinism
debate). The main argument against free will is that our actions are directly
determined by the state of our brain, and that since we don't have complete
access/control to our brains, we don't really have free will.

Yes, perhaps. But I do not think that this implies that we do not have any
free will, but rather that our choices may be influenced by processes that are
oblivious or transparent to our minds. Take the simple choice of picking an
arbitrary 5-digit number. It's likely that most people will say the first
digits that come to mind as an answer. I certainly did. These numbers may have
popped in mind as a consequence of their current brain state. But the thing to
remember is that a person still has the choice to purposefully alter or re-
consider their response. They are not forced to simply choose what first comes
to mind. In other words, they can choose whatever number that they want.

So yes, while we may not have total free will -- and there is experimental
evidence to support this -- I don't think that we absolutely and positively
have no free will either. The truth, I think, is somewhere in between.

