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Edgecrusher
Super Robot
Posts: 1371
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« Reply #59 on: 21 February 2008, 05:28:43 » |
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Survival traits don't serve as purposes. They serve as functions. ... Function: The kind of action or activity proper to a person, thing, or institution; the purpose for which something is designed or exists; role. So... a function is a purpose. So... the number of sperm, which you claim to be a survival trait and therefore a function, is... WAH NA NA! A purpose! OMG! |
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No more pencils, No more books
I built a city out' one brick, it had a Mayor and a Crook
I made the Crook stab the Mayor, then slay himself in the guilt
I stole the brick back and migrated east, now let's build. |
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Johncarllos
Super Robot
Posts: 6811
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« Reply #74 on: 21 February 2008, 15:43:41 » |
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Very much, and there is a great chance that it would be different. Think of all the very chance-y things that you remember, a possible mistake in the brain to do something that is completely random, and in the same situation would only replicate those results 1/100 times. Eventually, there would be a slight difference if the brain happened to view one thing just slightly different. I'll say that the fact that some things in the human brain happen randomly, and cannot be controlled. Also- *cough* Rich in protein *cough* cure female hunger *cough*
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I can skin anything smaller than a bobcat in 30 seconds. |
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Chron
Super Robot
Posts: 2790
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« Reply #78 on: 22 February 2008, 00:47:41 » |
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If you bounce a ball, it's going to do whatever ( bounce a couple times, roll ). If you were to drop that same ball in the exact same situation, it would bounce and roll in the exact same way. There is no argument about that.
Incorrect. Chaos theory suggests, and this is experimentally verifiable, that the ball will bounce differently every time it is dropped, in some slight manner, because there are so many other factors influencing the bounce of the ball. The ball has, for instance, been translated several million light-years (imperceptibly due to Earth's gravity field) across space. It is highly unlikely to be in the same position twice relative to a fixed point in the universe (although here you might be able to make an argument that we could fix a point relative to the Earth's speed, but even then the Earth doesn't travel quite uniformly due to being bent from speed). Also, any time the ball hits, it may pick up some ground particles and/or lose some of its own in the collision. Imperfections on the surface which the ball hits may change from bounce to bounce, and even the surface itself may translate imperceptibly from bounce to bounce. Factor in air currents and the accuracy of the device used to drop the ball. With all of this, I can quite conclusively debunk your theory. Unless by "exact" you mean the state of the entire universe (space and time) is the same each time. That's only possible with time travel, though. --- On to free will. The universe itself moves through states almost as a finite state machine. However it is seemingly infinite in nature, making it an infinite-state machine. The progression of these states is brought about by the interactions of components of each state. This is usually seen as the flow of time and movement of energy. There are two things to note, however: There is a substance, and energy, a constant distributed throughout the universe at all times in varying quantities. There is an extent, which is called space. There is an entirely separate value called time, which is not a collection of states, but rather a component of each state. Now, if we look at the universe from this angle, everything that happens really is predetermined, down to the very last string (or whatever the quantum is). There is no ability for humans to have free will, then; it is impossible. However, this supposes that consciousness is a very non-complex thing. I'm sure we may all agree that it is certainly not. However, consciousness is something that exists in many animals, for it is a primary method of living organisms to not die. Since these organisms are a subset of the components of the universal states, the universe itself must have some underlying support or mirroring of that consciousness (fractals are seen day in and day out in life and the universe, so perhaps this is fractal in nature?). Factor in that you and I are self-conscious, a property called sentience. By the same logic above, the universe must have some superset of its "self" regarding sentience. In fact, we are all probably part of that universal self-consciousness, each part being a window for the whole. If then, the universe has some manner of seeing its own state... ... and all properties of organisms that are part of it are also properties the universe has... ... it is NOT illogical to say the free will exists. In fact, it is natural. |
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