No free will? A deterministic universe?

[Specforces]

An ongoing discussion among scientists is if the universe is deterministic, meaning that everything that happens is predetermined, from the creation of men right down to every letter I am typing right now. Stephen Hawking once spoke of the cover of this month's Vogue possibly already determined 15 billion years ago when our universe (supposedly) begun.

Let me start by saying that as a human being I refuse to accept that everything is pre-determined, or rather can be calculated in advance. But there are some disturbing facts that may confuse someone that believes this. When you use today's known science as a guide, something RANDOM doesn't really exist. It seems likely to say that throwing a die has a random outcome, which can't be predicted. However disturbing it may seem this really isn't true. What number is shown on the die is dependent on the start position of the die, hand and how the person's hand moves when he throws it. Even today it wouldn't be impossible to let a computer calculate what the outcome of the throw would be if the speed of the moving hand would be recorded and measured. This may be difficult but not impossible.

When you place a pencil on your desk with the point down, surely there is no way to tell which way it would fall? For a human not, but on a moleculair level it is just a logical process, a result of how you release the pencil and at which side the point is the thickest on the smallest level.

Computers themselves can calculate random numbers. Random? No not really, they just do a trick with the computerclock which works with milliseconds, impossible to be detected by a human, but still possible to calculate in advance. Which, in essence, is exactly what the computer does.

So is it possible to have something completely random, which can't be calculated in advance? I can't think of any example. The weather is too complicated to be calculated exactly by computers these days, but it is still a result of environmental processes.

If you ask yourself to think of a random number, surely that is random and can't be predicted? Well, somone else can't predict it, but the number you choose is still just a result of chemical processes in your brain. Which, if properly understood and computers would be a billion times more powerful, could theoratically be predicted. Assuming that God doesn't exist means that a human being is nothing more than a computer that we will be able to build ourselves in a thousand years. Our brains work with the same electrical principles as computers do, just way more complicated.

So how does an idea form in a human brain? Chemical and electrical processes determine which braincells are activated, of course in a different way for every single person because everyone's brain is different due to genetical and environmental forming of the brain. But still governed by basic physical rules.

Let's get down to the atomic level. How an electron jumps from one atom to another (electricity). When does the electron jump? Who decides when and how he jumps? Again, following today's science, that could all be calculated.

Today's research is fascinating, brainscans and the growing understanding of our brain, which is esentially run by chemical processes and electrons. Would mean that if we ever figure out how the brain works, that in a sense an electron would have figured out about itself how it works, because the researchers are human being with brains run by electrons themselves!

Assuming that the universe started with a big bang, the formation in the beginning was dictated by atoms and electrons and protons and smaller etc. moving to random places. Random? Well not really, because every particale has a reason to move somwhere, because it is attracted by an opposite charge or because it is given a certain speed. Immensly complex, because there are uncountable many particles, but still deterministic, because it COULD be calculated in advance, if given enough time and a powerful enough computer.

How an atomic particle moves is dictated by physics surely? What else? How does a particle decide to move which way? If it isn't dictated by initial speed or charges/gravity forces of surrounding particles, it would have to have a mind of its own or require divine intervention.

That is where the problem starts I think, to be able to calculate what happens next in the universe, which essentially should be possible, you wouldn't just need a behemoth of a computer. Computers themselves are part of and have influence on the universe as well, also run by electrons. I believe that the only "formula" or computer that could ever predict the universe, would have to be the universe itself. Because EVERY variable would have to be taken in account This would be infinitely complicated and could never be done if the particles that are involved aren't part of this supercomputer itself. This would fit well with the theory that if a global unifying all-explaining theory or formula would exist it would have to predict its own existence as well. The universe itself would have to be its own computer that could possibly predict, or rather run, itself.

Of course I have to mention quantum-mechanics, which says that certain thinmgs are only determined if you measure them. For instance you can only measure either the place OR the speed of a particle. To accept this you have to consider the possibily of paralell universums. There are experiments which show that some split particles have influence on each other, when you measure one of them, this influence seems to be intanteneous, which actually means faster than the speed of light. There are formulas that work, but still aren't understood. This is equally disturbing as a deterministic universe. Who determines the speed of the particle before it is measured? Actually another discussion, but connected to this one.

Well, this is all rather disturbing, because again, assuming God doesn't exist, that would mean that everthing is predetermined and we would be void of free will....

Specforces