Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagKevin Mitchell

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Mix Media 3D Render - Brain blue fire smoke effect on the black background

Scientists Dare To Hint That the Mind Can’t Just Be the Brain

They start with astonishing facts about the brains of caterpillars and worms and end up discussing human near-death experiences
Whether they continue to push the boundary, or someone else does, they can only bring up so many unaccounted-for facts before it’s time for a revolution. Read More ›
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Realistic figure standing at a fork in the road, surrounded by an incredible amount of detail, representing the concept of free will in a realistic setting

A Materialist Neuroscientist Makes a Case for Free Will, Cont’d

When Mitchell tries to construct a naturalistic model of will, he is drifting away from the common experience of will that motivated the whole discussion
Despite its limitations, I would recommend Mitchell’s book as a “gateway” drug for anyone who is stuck in a reductionist-materialist paradigm. Read More ›
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living room interior view and open door, Generated AI

A Materialist Neuroscientist Makes a Case for Free Will

Kevin Mitchell makes a good case though his book is not equally persuasive on every point
Mitchell points out that “there is nothing in the laws of physics that rules out the possibility of agency or free will, a priori.” Read More ›
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A choice of two ways. Woman at a crossroads.

Free Will: Never Let Mere Atoms Near a Keyboard

No free will — and therefore no responsibility — may sound more “cool” than free will but we had better be careful about what we admire
If there is no free will, you can’t say “I didn’t do it” if sociologically, you have a higher probability of doing it than someone else might. Read More ›
Independent Thinking

The Free Will Debate Really Heated Up This Year

Many commentators are weighing in; surprisingly, perhaps, well-known materialists are disputing the claim that there is no free will
Given that both Pinker and Horgan are Darwinian materialists, their coldness toward the idea that there is no free will is worth keeping an eye on. Read More ›
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a hand drops a ballot into a transparent plastic ballot box on election day at a polling station. the will of the voters. free elections. Generative AI

Can Evolution Create Free Will? A Neurologist Says Yes

Could the impersonal natural force of evolution shape hierarchies in the human cerebral cortex so that we have the free will that it does not itself have?
It appears that materialists have not been able to simply disprove free will, so Mitchell seems to be trying to shape an evolution theory to fit it. Read More ›