The concept of free will popped up in a discussion I have with @Sanoy. I think it should have its own thread to keep things a little tidy.
Is free will real? Can it be real, given what we know about natural laws? Is it truly possible, philosophically speaking?
There are different conceptions of what free will means. What I mean by it is something like this: the ability to make a choice (or think of something) without that choice being determined by something else. For example, you can use your will to choose pizza over tacos, but is it a free choice? Do you pick one over the other for no reason? Or is it in fact determined by, say, that you just don't happen to like the taste of one of them (which obviously isn't something you freely chose)?
What would be an example of truly free will being exercised?
(Posted in this subforum because it has implications for how we think about morality.)
Is free will real? Can it be real, given what we know about natural laws? Is it truly possible, philosophically speaking?
There are different conceptions of what free will means. What I mean by it is something like this: the ability to make a choice (or think of something) without that choice being determined by something else. For example, you can use your will to choose pizza over tacos, but is it a free choice? Do you pick one over the other for no reason? Or is it in fact determined by, say, that you just don't happen to like the taste of one of them (which obviously isn't something you freely chose)?
What would be an example of truly free will being exercised?
(Posted in this subforum because it has implications for how we think about morality.)