I had a discussion with a fellow psychology student, who told me that it would soon be possible to test the hypothesis of free will, by looking directly at neurons.
Earlier that evening, she had asked me if I had any room for the concept of free will, in my emerging new view of the world.
I’m not quite sure what to answer, because I don’t really understand the concept. What is free will free from, seeing as freedom is always in relation to something? And it can’t be totally free anyway, can it? There will always be some choices we can’t make, because the actions would be impossible. (Of course, we could wish to do them.) There will be just as many choices we can’t make, because we never think of them as alternatives.
But what is will, has it got to do with choosing at all? What is the philosophical definition of free will? Not to mention the scientific – operational – definition. What observation could we make that would either demonstrate that the will is free – or falsify it? I need to know this to think further about the issues, and would be happy for some help.
(Norwegian version here.)
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English translation of some of my posts. For the Norwegian version, visit "Ting jeg er interessert i".
My profile in English
28-year-old male, sort of a psychology student, largely optimistic about science, likes to write, fascinated and scared by the world. My other interests will become apparent from the blog itself. (Its name in Norwegian means "things I'm interested in".)
My actual profile, with a picture and the above text in Norwegian, can be found here.
(For my English readers in particular: I won't apologize for errors in spelling or grammar, because I think people should make fewer apologies alltogether. However, I admit that I'm sometimes embarrased when I discover the errors I do make. That's what happens when you only learn a language towards the end of the optimal language-learning period.)
My actual profile, with a picture and the above text in Norwegian, can be found here.
(For my English readers in particular: I won't apologize for errors in spelling or grammar, because I think people should make fewer apologies alltogether. However, I admit that I'm sometimes embarrased when I discover the errors I do make. That's what happens when you only learn a language towards the end of the optimal language-learning period.)
Autumn
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