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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Happy to watch the video. Can you point me to where I can do so. As to boundaries, I believe they are a transient illusion (or delusion) that prevents us from being in true touch with the unitary nature of the universe. I have to run to a meeting (not literally, I am actually driving), and...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I understand your point and stated in the part of my post that you did not reproduce that I understood that others on this board were of that view. I disagree, but I am content to agree to disagree. I believe we have both staked out our view, and there is no point in continuing to go around in...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I begin by stating that it really does not matter what words you are DBT have used. All that matters is what you meant by those words -- as many of the words being used have multiple meanings and even more connotations. I think we are on the same page when we say that the word...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    A better word than "conscious" might be "deliberate" -- but even that has problems. Also, I described brain activity as consisting as the conscious function and the sub-conscious function (and not unconscious or non-conscious). By saying sub-conscious, I did not mean to suggest that the brain...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Why not simply go with "brain function" "brain activity" "neurological function" or "neurological activity" -- all of which are neutral to conscious versus unconscious and avoid Cartesian dualism. Otherwise, thanks for your considered response to my prior post.
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Exactly. Chaos Theory, Indeterminism, Quantum Theory and all other theories that are based on the perceived observation of a lack of perfect predictability miss the point that the historical usage of the term Determinism in philosophy describes an idealized paradigm that exists without respect...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    To say that "Mind is what the brain does" sounds like you are using the term as a verb, when it is, in fact, a noun (outside, of course, from secondary meanings that I don't understand to be in play here -- such as when the term is used in the following sentences: "Please mind the store until I...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I submit that the "mind" and the "will" are philosophical and theological concepts that have no place in any discussion of science, physics, math, biology, etc. Some folks loosely / carelessly refer to the brain as the mind, but they are different things. The brain is an organ (or, at least, a...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I believe I already have responded to a similar post of your within the past hour. The so-called "mess" results from the polysemantic nature of the terms "Determinism," "Free Will" and "Compatibilism." Rather than continue to talk past DBT, it would be helpful if you would simply acknowledge...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    As I read all of the posts, as well as the historical philosophical record on this issue, I understand DBT to be saying that (i) traditional Philosophical Compatibilists (as contrasted with those of the 20th and 21st Centuries who I will call Scientific Compatibilists) accept the definitions of...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    That is a lot of words to unpack, and a lot of thought to ponder. Nonetheless, I do generally understand what you are saying, and I do not denigrate or reject it on a human plane (or what Buddhists call the mundane). I even applaud you for what appears to be an effort to develop a methodology...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I do not read the words you quoted to assert that the metaphysical paradigm of determinism is true. Rather, and as I previously had stated about DBT's position in general, I read the quoted words to set forth DBT's understanding of the operation of the paradigm of Determinism and the concept of...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    There is nothing implicit (or, as you say, illicit) in my question, which you either refuse to answer or are incapable of answering. Moreover, there is so much wrong with the balance of your latest non-answer that it is not worth my time seeking to respond on point. Accordingly, and as I stated...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Rather than continue to argue with my statements, can you please answer the question posed in the penultimate sentence of the post you are criticizing?
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I appreciate the debate that rages on this board. Although I believe that the participants (including me) often write past one another, and could be more formal in their analysis, I now understand the following: 1. The term "Determinism" has different meanings to different people -- with the...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    I do not read DBT to be advocating for the truth of the metaphysical paradigm of Determinism and/or what you call Radical Fatalism. Nonetheless, I suppose it is not my burden to carry DBT's water for him. [Out of curiosity, however, I do ask that you please identify the statement(s) made by DBT...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Call it what you wish. Call it Jabberwocky is you want. The name does not matter. The fact is that I am using a name and description that has been developed over many centuries by respected philosophers. If, however, you want to quibble over nomenclature, that is fine. As I stated in my...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    As I have now said multiple times, it is your prerogative to take Umbridge with the truth of the premise of the metaphysical paradigm of Determinism -- either because it is your own decision to do so if you have Free Will, because you are compelled to do so if the premise is true, or possibly...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    "If" the universe were perfectly deterministic (which can be neither proved nor falsified), nobody would be thinking themselves into anything, because the very act of thinking would be perfectly determined by antecedent activities. The same would be true of whether someone does or does not get...
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    According to Robert Sapolsky, human free will does not exist

    Popper did not fail to understand what you assert. Rather, Popper agreed with you as a factual matter. Popper was, however, also willing to accept the contours of the metaphysical paradigm of Determinism for the purpose of examining its logical consequences -- which invalidate the existence of...
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