Peter Jones writes: > Stathis Papaioannou wrote: > > John Mikes writes: > > > > > Peter: > > > "... A counterfactual is a COUNTERfactual - -it is > > > something that could have happenned but didn't. There is no > > > reason why we should be conscious of in things > > > we coudl have done but didn't. ..." > > > > > > JM: > > > It could not have happened in another way if it did happen THIS way.. WE > > > may > > > think - in our limited circle of knowledge - that something else was also > > > viable, but in the deterministic world of a total (unlimited, not > > > model-enclosed) interconnectedness - whatever happened, was "the" possible > > > way of events. > > > I am not talking about HP universes or thought experiments. > > > > Yes: the mere fact that we *think* it could have happened differently does > > not > > mean that it could have happened differently. > > Counterfactuals come from physical determinism, they > are not contrary to it. Causal determism mean there are > physical laws determining events which can be modelled > by mathematival statements. The mathermatical > formulation of physical laws allows you to answer > hypothetical questions even if the actual situation cannot > be phsyically realised for some practical reason. > > > If the actual situation cannot > be physically realised for some practical reason, > there is a sense in which it is impossible -- > but it is not the same sense of impossible > as something which is forbidden by physical > laws.
But is there any sense in which we as humans are any more "free" than billiard balls or dice beyond the fact that we *feel* we are free? I have a strong feeling that my free will is not randomness and not determinism: is there anything really other tthan these two possibilities? Stathis Papaioannou _________________________________________________________________ Be one of the first to try Windows Live Mail. http://ideas.live.com/programpage.aspx?versionId=5d21c51a-b161-4314-9b0e-4911fb2b2e6d --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
