Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site mit-hermes.ARPA Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!harvard!think!mit-eddie!mit-hermes!daemon From: daemon@mit-hermes.ARPA (The devil himself) Newsgroups: net.philosophy Subject: philosophy Message-ID: <2446@mit-hermes.ARPA> Date: Wed, 7-Aug-85 15:14:52 EDT Article-I.D.: mit-herm.2446 Posted: Wed Aug 7 15:14:52 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 11-Aug-85 03:33:43 EDT Organization: The MIT AI Lab, Cambridge, MA Lines: 36 From ROBCHRJ%YALEVMX.BITNET@Berkeley Wed Aug 7 15:14:26 1985 Received: from UCB-VAX.ARPA (ucb-vax.arpa.ARPA) by MIT-HERMES.ARPA (4.12/4.8) id AA05062; Wed, 7 Aug 85 15:14:26 edt Received: from ucbjade.CC.Berkeley.ARPA (ucbjade.ARPA) by UCB-VAX.ARPA (4.24/5.3) id AA00809; Wed, 7 Aug 85 12:12:15 pdt Received: from UCBVAX.ARPA by ucbjade.CC.Berkeley.ARPA (4.19/4.36.2) id AA08290; Wed, 7 Aug 85 11:41:53 pdt Date: Wed, 7 Aug 85 11:41:49 pdt From: ROBCHRJ%YALEVMX.BITNET@Berkeley Message-Id: <8508071841.AA08290@ucbjade.CC.Berkeley.ARPA> Apparently-To:References: <3484@decwrl.UUCP> > What I was trying to demonstrate is how an unmeasurable influence can affect > your behaviour. This is a good example of a decision that has a high degree > of freedom. It's a very good example, because it pinpoints exactly where Rich Rosen and his opponents have been clashing. Rich would have us believe that there is no such thing as "free" will because the brain, like anything else, is part of the system of cause and effect; hence our decisions are caused, not free. This- is not really true, since our brains operate on a scale that can be affected by random quantum events. This probably isn't much consolation to the people (whether or not they are represented on the net) who would like to believe in absolute autonomy of the will, a will neither caused nor random. It remains to be shown that the absence of determinism means anything other than the presence of randomness. Chris Roberson Calhoun College, Yale University ---- They collapsed....like nuns in the street....they had no teen appeal!