"Free will is an illusion. Our wills are simply not of our own making. Thoughts and intentions emerge from background causes of which we are unaware and over which we exert no conscious control." - Sam Harris, "Free Will"
Definition: Free will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. Historically, the constraint of dominant concern has been the metaphysical constraint of determinism.
Example Content:
Title: The Illusion of Free Will?
Recent neuroscientific studies have proposed an interesting, and slightly unsettling, perspective on free will. Experiments have shown that our brain activity related to a decision, like pressing a button with our left or right hand, can be detected several seconds before we're consciously aware of making that decision. This challenges the notion of free will, suggesting that our conscious decisions might just be the results of unconscious brain activity. But what does this mean for our concept of self, responsibility, and agency? The debate rages on, with philosophers and scientists alike weighing in on this age-old question.
Continue to populate this block with evolving arguments, studies, and philosophical ideas surrounding the concept of free will.