This has been bugging me., Leave religion at the door. Options

[Call911Quick]

Okay, so, we all know how our bodies work right? We're made up of tons of cells, etc.

The cells operate passively. That is, something happens which triggers a reaction. Blood passes through lungs, oxygen passively diffuses into the blood and into the cell. When you have molecules such as glucose which need to be broken down, they literally float around until they bump into amylase or something like that, which would cause a reaction.

So every cell in our bodies passively do things.

Now, my problem is:

If this holds true for our brains (neurons) as well, then that would mean every emotion, memory, action, and thought would be a result of a series of chemical reactions. That is grasp-able, but what's really weird is... if it's PASSIVE, are we really in control of what we THINK? For example, if I'm thinking of penguins right now, is it because my neurons CHOSE to do that, or because a protein happened to be in a certain place at a certain time which caused me to think of penguins.

Psychologists study thoughts, and basically, they can tell which part of the brain is active when we think about certain things. So... thinking is just our neurons sending each other electrical signals really really fast and in a complex manner. Now, in order to send these signals, it's caused by diffusing Potassium and some other stuff, I don't really recall. At any rate, it's all passive. So if everything is passive, and something has to happen by chance to trigger a reaction...

Are we really in control of what we think and do?

Humans can be though of complex machines that are able to power themselves. If we stopped eating, we would die. If we built a robot with AI, that robot would sustain itself by getting energy from other sources, such as re-fueling or re-charging itself. How are we any different? We are just robots. What makes us "organic" is that we are comprised mainly of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen.

Thus, if you think of life as a mere series of chemical reactions, there's nothing "morally wrong" with killing someone, because you are merely stopping certain reactions from happening. No big deal. Maybe this is why certain scientists can be thought of as "without a conscience", because they view life that way, and don't have a problem with experimenting on people, etc.




-----Kind of related question




Okay, let's say I have a twin (I don't). Our brains as babies when we exit the uterus would be EXACTLY the same. Perhaps they grow differently as we are affected by our surroundings, but fresh outta our mom, we would be EXACTLY the same. If we're EXACTLY the same, how come we don't think EXACTLY the same thoughts? What is it that makes me cry but my twin brother not? Why do I want the red toy, while he wants the blue one? How come when I choose to suck on my left toe as a baby, my brother doesn't? Theoretically, since our physical buildup is exactly the SAME... we should be doing exactly the SAME things also. Right?

[NoSex]

Are we really in control of what we think and do?

No.

there's nothing "morally wrong"

Correct. But, that's sort of irrelevant to the issue of determinism. Determinism has "ethical" implications but it doesn't, in of itself, deny morality as an objective system (though I would myself). All determinism ensures is that, even if there is a morally wrong or right choice, since we can not freely choose anything no one can be held responsible for his or her actions. Thus no one being can be said to be a moral being or be punished for his transgressions or rewarded for his victories.

If we're EXACTLY the same, how come we don't think EXACTLY the same thoughts?

Your environments are not identical and, unless you shared a shell, could not be. Thus, you wouldn't expect that a = b. However, if you were exactly the same, sure, it seems as if you would have to have "identical" thoughts (especially if we're "leaving religion at the door.").

There is no room for free will in the realms of science. If you believe in causation, you have to face the fact that the homunculus doesn't exist. We are caused systems ourselves, bound and tethered to this earth. We have no will and no spiritual identity.