Complexism involves the extension of the world-view suggested by complexity science into the problem space of the arts and humanities. In doing so complexism provides a higher synthesis that subsumes both modern and postmodern concerns, attitudes, and activities. Complexism provides an intellectual meeting ground where 20th century conflicts between science and the humanities can be reconciled.

For a provisional overview see
Complexism and evolutionary art.

While I'll try my best to make entries here of value, please understand that I'm using this blog as a sort of scratch pad. I'm going to feel free at times to speculate wildly, change my mind, contradict myself, not include citations, and otherwise brainstorm.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Free will in a nutshell

The debate about free will is something of an old chestnut. And so here is my position in a nutshell. (Previously posted on the eugene mailing list.)

My best guess is that behavior bubbles up from pre-conscious neural processes. Consciousness is mostly an observer of behavior already well on its way. But it doesn't feel that way. That's perhaps because observing our own observing would lead to an impossible infinite regress. So when we feel our own behaviors they feel uncaused. And that creates the inner sense of free will.

At the same time...

We are each individually a jumble of incredibly complex cross-connected chaotic processes. This makes our behavior, beyond a
certain point, fundamentally unpredictable. Our own feeling of free will, combined with the observed unpredictability of others, leads us to posit free will in others as well. And others are happy to agree.

Consciousness as the first person experience of qualia is a whole other matter. A much larger mystery, in my book, than free will.

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