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3
4
Yes No
Debate Score:7
Arguments:7
Total Votes:8
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 Yes (2)
 
 No (2)

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HarvardGrad(174) pic



Is Determinism Compatible With 'Free Will'?

Yes

Side Score: 3
VS.

No

Side Score: 4
1 point

The evidence for free will is in quantum mechanics. You can google it if you want to but good luck trying to understand the argument when only 0.1% of the population can actually read and understand quantum theory. There is of course scientific evidence for determinism also. I take it that there is probably some determinism that directs are lives with a little bit of free-will wiggle space in the end. That's my interpretation.

Side: Yes
flewk(1193) Disputed
2 points

That is entirely dependent on the interpretation of quantum field theory. The current accepted interpretation does not prove non-determinism, just a lack of quantifiable determinism. Observation and perspective are still part of a deterministic system. These tools fail to quantify deterministic states. That does not prove there are none from a non-deterministic perspective.

It is like trying to prove non-causality from a causal reference point.

Side: Yes
daver(1771) Clarified
2 points

The original poster was asking about moral decisions and if we truly make free moral choices.

IMO moral choices are the same as any other choices, in that we make choices that support the out come we have chosen. ie. Cause followed by its effect. We chose outcomes in the same way, by selecting the one that best fits our goals or needs. While a decision cause and effect structure can be very large and complex, each step is simple and direct.

Side: Yes
2 points

NO. Free will is an illusion we create or carry in our minds. Nothing can occur without a cause. Determinism is simply an accurate view of causal reality as we are currently able to perceive it.

When we THINK we have chosen, what has actually occurred is that we have been CAUSED by the factors we have considered and our own experience, to go in only one direction.

Interestingly we can not duplicate the same causal effect a second time because our experience has been altered by the first one. Hmmm

Side: No
HarvardGrad(174) Clarified
1 point

I was thinking along the lines of 'Moral responsibility'. Like, are your choices free?

Side: Yes

For determinism you don't need a free-will approach and attitude.

Side: No