The neuroscientific foundations of free will
The issue of free will is at the heart of understanding ourselves, what it means to be a conscious, thinking, and responsibly acting human being. A position on this issue has profound implications on how we see ourselves as moral agents and on our place i
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Contents Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Philosophical introduction, the free will debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The neurophysiology of free will . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brain activation precedes movement decision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Biasing freely willed decisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The feeling of agency (I am the one who’s doing it) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The neuroanatomical substrate of free will . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conclusions from clinical and neurophysiological observations . . . . . . . . . . . . Neurophilosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ethical consequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Abstract The issue of free will is at the heart of understanding ourselves, what it means to be a conscious, thinking, and responsibly acting human being. A position on this issue has profound implications on how we see ourselves as moral agents and on our place in the universe. The developments in neuroscience over the last half century have provided us with much data concerning the function of the brain and its relationship to the mind. In this article we shall review contributions of both neurosurgeons and other neuroscientists to our understanding of free will. The volitional motor model will be emphasized for heuristic purposes. Ultimately, by understanding the limits of our freedom, we can enhance our concept of the meaning of our lives. Keywords: Free will; neuroscience. J. D. Pickard et al. (eds.), Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery © Springer-Verlag/Wien 2011
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Z. H. RAPPAPORT
We all have an authentic and immediate belief that we are in control over our actions. This belief has been discussed over the millennia in three spheres of thought: Religion (omnipotent and omniscient divinity), ethics (responsibility for actions), and science (the mind and physical causes). The issue of free will is at the heart of understanding ourselves, what it means to be a conscious, thinking, and responsibly acting human being. A position on this issue has profound implications on how we see ourselves as moral agents and on our place in the universe. The developments in neuroscience over the last half century have provided us with much data concerning the function of the brain and its relationship to the mind. Neurosurgeons have been an important part in furthering our knowledge of brain function both in health a
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