Will B. Free

Is our behavior determined by biological processes?

If free will were a delusion, what implications would this have with our system of laws and our codes of moral behavior?

If free will were a delusion, just a figment of our imagination, it would mean that we only have one way of doing things. Based on what the “right thing” is, like automatically avoiding a puddle, our actions would be one-track and very predictable… even though we seem to be thinking about them. Our laws and codes of moral behavior tell us what the right thing is. They tell us that we shouldn’t kill, shouldn’t jaywalk and should pay the right jeepney fare. If free will were a delusion, then we would automatically do what the law tells us. The “right thing” would be to follow the law, and just like avoiding a puddle, we wouldn’t consciously realize why.

If this were the case, then there would come a time that we would need really specific laws, like when are we allowed to take a right turn in an intersection at 10am on Thursdays. Well, not that specific. What I mean is, if we really didn’t have free will, then someone or something would always be telling us what to do. We would seem to be deciding on what we should do, but in the end we would just follow what they tell us. What the laws say, what our codes of moral behavior say. And if we don’t have enough laws to cover every possible action, then we literally don’t know what to do.

Can free will be reconciled with science or scientific method?

I was watching I-Robot a few days ago. In one of the scenes, Will Smith was trapped inside a sinking car. A robot comes, and begins to help him. However, Will implores the robot save the girl in the other sinking car instead. The robot wouldn’t, because Will had a higher chance of surviving than the girl. And so, because the robot didn’t have free will, it just computed what the “right thing” was, and acted. And so, Will lived, the girl died, and we have a nice background for a really good movie.

Science and scientific methods are exact, predictable. They find logical and reasonable reasons how and why things happen as they happen. They know why the sky is blue and the grass is green. However, they still don’t know why people pick vanilla ice cream over chocolate, or why students like 5:30pm to 7:00pm classes better than 7:00am to 8:30am ones. Science can find out that we like vanilla because it’s not as sweet as chocolate, or that we like night classes better so that we can sleep and wake up late. But, science can’t find out why we like the less sweet, or why we like to sleep a lot. Free will is a matter of personal preference, of weighing what we want with what is offered. Most of the time, the choice is predictable, like doing our homework, as opposed to ignoring them. But sometimes, the choice is a bit weird, like why we would still cram our homework when we’ve seen time and again that cramming sucks. As of now, free will can be reconciled with science… to a point. For me, some things are just meant to be kept a mystery, and free will is one of those things.

Is our behavior governed by biological processes rather than free will?

Ah, tricky question. Well… it depends. :P

As much as I would like to plainly answer yes or no, behavior isn’t as clear cut as black and white. Suppose you’re in Mcdo, and you order a Big Mac and a sundae. Your brain tells you to order a lot of food because you’re hungry, so you get a Big Mac. However, who or what told you to order the sundae? Perhaps you wanted to get your daily ice cream fix. Was it your free will that told you that, or was it your brain that remembered that you really like Mcdo’s sundae?

Probably both. Biological processes in our brain tell us what we like and dislike, what’s right or wrong for us. Yet, it is up to us is we would follow these urges. In Penfield’s experiment, he stimulated a patient’s brain to make him move his arm. The arm moved, obviously, but when the patient knew it was moving without him wanting it, he realized that it wasn’t him that made it move. The patient’s free will got trumped by biological processes in his brain. But, under normal circumstances (meaning, no one’s messing with your brain), your arm won’t move until you want it to move. This time, your free will trumps biological processes.

Surprisingly, free will doesn’t always lose to biological processes. Sure, you can’t tell your heart to stop beating. But with proper training, you can make your heart slow down, similar to monks reaching meditative states and David Blaine. What I mean is, free will and biological processes go hand in hand in our behavior and daily life. If we only had free will, and no biological processes for us to do what we want, then we would go nowhere. If we only had biological processes and no free will to decide what to do, then we would just be like animals that just follow their instincts.