Comments on: Frith free will froth

By: Conscious Robots

Conscious Robots — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:33:29 +0000

Interesting study. It’s peculiar to see science entering the philosophical arena for a change. It is a really weird thought though to imagine your body auto-managing decisions while you sit back and observe. I wonder how we can define our conscious mind if even decision making is relegated to the unconscious brain.
Ian from http://www.consciousrobots.org

By: Anibal

Anibal — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 17:35:43 +0000

Since the seminal investigations and papers of Libet (1983), then rlefected in a full-length book published in 2003 (Mind Time: Temporal factor in consciousness), have been many disscusions about the implications of Libet¬¥s finding in relation to the traditional conception of cartesian philosophical free will, that is, that human agency is totally a prime mover encapsulated form the rest of the cuasal chains of the world.
Its bacward refering to sensory experiences or its 0.5 sec of time since the first “readiness potential” recorded in the scalp of the subect, while he is only conscious of the itention to move later, have been critisized by many in terms of its flaw methodological construal (how the movement of finger is necessary to dertermine free will and not the consequences of of an action in the context of an interaction with others)or that this time (o.5 sec) before the subject becomes aware of his intention to move, is just only a reflection of the process of neural consolidation.
I think Libet is credited by being the first author to tackle the problem of free will in a modern scientifically manner but the the problem of free wil is constrained by many factors not yet captured by today neuroscientific experimental designs. There are many cultural, individual, societal… factors necessary to explain free will and the conceptual clarification of philosphers is still needed before we have clear picture of how the brain could create movemnts “de novo” (true free will) or only a movement that is preceed by other (illusion of free will).

By: Cecilia Abadie

Cecilia Abadie — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 10:48:18 +0000

I think we are in a pre-Copernican view of the human mind, thinking that unconsciousness (Sun) revolves around consciousness (Earth). The way I’d interpret Libet’s experiment is that un-consciously the will to move the finger is there before it gets to be conscious, therefore the brain registers unconscious activity before the individual is aware of wanting to do something. I predict as we have more tools to interpret the unconscious life we’ll move into a more Copernican-like view of the mind, where unconscious is the real thing and consciousness is just a little part of our selves.