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To: Reeses
. . . . but truly random forces don't actually exist, and therefore neither does free will. . . .

In what way does free will depend on the existence of randomness?
14 posted on 01/23/2005 1:43:19 PM PST by Logophile
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To: Logophile
In what way does free will depend on the existence of randomness?

It doesn't. It only depends on subjective uncertainty (limits on predictive accuracy in some context), which looks similar to "randomness" but is not.

20 posted on 01/23/2005 1:54:44 PM PST by tortoise (All these moments lost in time, like tears in the rain.)
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To: Logophile
In what way does free will depend on the existence of randomness?

First, think of a random number from 1 to 10 and remember it. If random forces don't exist then all energy in the universe has one preordained future. In theory this could be calculated ahead of time. Since we are made of this energy, we also have one preordained future that cannot be changed. Knowing this we could change a decision, though this modification was preordained. So our sense of free will is just our imagination. Is the number you picked three? We are not so random after all.

29 posted on 01/23/2005 3:48:02 PM PST by Reeses
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