Questions tagged [free-will]
for questions concerning the freedom of choice of rational agents (often as opposed to determinism)
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Benjamin Libet Free Will Experiment
I'm unable to understand this GIF of Benjamin Libet's free will experiment.
Please look at the bottom left of the diagram and you'll see the numbers 1 followed by 2 and then by 3.
What I think is ...
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Which WILL is right or most important?
Will to Power (Nietzsche):
Proposed by Friedrich Nietzsche, this concept suggests that the primary driving force in humans is the will to power, which goes beyond mere survival or pleasure. It ...
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Recommend an essay, article, entry, author, or branch of philosophy that addresses the futility of arguing for or against free will
I did first search this site, but I was not allowed to participate because I am new (I guess). There is a lot of great content here so I guess that is warranted (though it doesn't feel that way). That ...
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What are philosophers doing when they are discussing free will?
I was interested in exploring ideas about free will but whenever I hear/read discussion I always get confused about the definition of free will. So I said to myself, "okay, I missed the memo on ...
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What is the use in arguing for or against the existence of metaphysical things?
It seems to me that we ought to be rather indifferent to their existence. Take free will, for example. By the nature of how it's defined, and its incompatibility with science, it can't be proven nor ...
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Why is The Milgram Experiment used in reference to the Nazis free will
This may be more of a psychology question but having received no answer on the psychology forum I'm asking it here in relation to free will. The Milgram experiment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
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The Evolution of Free Will: Is Kevin Mitchell's argument robust?
In his lecture at the Royal Institution, Associate Professor of Genetics and Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin, asserts that humans have free will; that a human can be the 'locus of causal power'....
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Darwinian Free Will
Free will gives a creature the ability to make rational choices. [Premise]
A creature that has the ability to make rational choices can better access & utilize biotic (food, mates, friends, ...
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How can God gives us free will and yet be the creator and originator of everything at the same time? [closed]
Religious people say we have free will in that god has the knowledge of whatever will happen but he doesn't cause our actions, we have a choice. I did an act of sin out of my own choice; god was only ...
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How can religious conception of choice be consistent with the notion of omnipotent, all powerful God? [duplicate]
Religious people say we have free will in that god has knowledge of whatever will happen but he doesn't make us do sin. I did an act of sin out of my own choice; god was just already aware of the ...
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Truly selfless acts
Is there an example for a truly selfless (/random) act, with no benefit to the actor?
consider that benefit for the actor could also be in the form of
good conscience
admiration / prominence (can ...
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What kind of free will does Harry Potter have while travelling in time?
In the movie A prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter is saved by a mysterious figure that looks like his father shortly before passing out. After that, he learns that time travel is real. He travels to ...
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Who Bears the Burden of Proof Regarding Free Will: Advocates or Skeptics
Debates on free will often raise the question of evidence: who will have the best evidence? However, before discussing evidence, I would like to know who bears this responsibility in philosophical and ...
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Did Ayn Rand have an argument for free will?
Ayn Rand, of course, believed humans have free will. She asserted this idea many, many times. But, try as I might, I have not been able to find an argument for it from her. It's hard for me to ...
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'I can consent to be coerced at a later time' Is this a logical paradox?
The sentence seems to be a paradox. Defining coerce as persuading an unwilling person, while also having agreed to be persuaded would indicate you are not unwilling. Does this line of reasoning make ...
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