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Free Will... Not Free Willy (but could we if we 'wanted/chose' to?)

Ambiguous figures, of which the Serendip logo (circa 1994-95) is one example, make possible some interesting observations bearing on the existence and meaning of "free will".

In most people's minds, "free will" has two relatively distinct properties. The first is the idea that what one does is in some sense "free", that is "not determined by something else". The second is the idea that one can oneself control what one does.

Notice that the Serendip logo can sometimes be seen as consisting of green arrows pointing to the right, and at other times as yellow arrows pointing to the left, but is infrequently or never seen as both (unless one tries very hard).

Trust your instincts if nothing else

NOTE FROM GRAHAM
Since reading Malcom Gladwell's book, 'Blink' I have become considerably more comfortable in my own ability to make the 'correct' decision as a 'snap judgement', instinctual response, emotional or anger, practical or in practical, right or wrong. It would seem for me anyway that my  instinct has been proven right on many occasions which can only fill 'me' with more confidence about the 'inner workings' of 'me' as a person.

It's only if I allow time to doubt myself that it all goes horribly wrong (some would argue my whole life is horribly wrong). Malcom, through many studies and examples gives a convincing case that our instinct is 'mostly' the correct response in any given situation. It is a great book, not huge, so a easy swift read. He also has a web site, www.gladwell.com and Blog (blog is lacking in recent entries). The book will no doubt leave you feeling a lot more self assured. That's ofcourse if your instincts have generally been spot on. If not, then maybe you should give it a miss! :0)

This following study from University College of London, reinforces this understanding of the human mind.

You Can Always Read This Later - Psychology News

SOURCE: ScienceBlogs - Page 3.14
AUTHOR: Emily Anthes

Piers Steel, a professor at the University of Calgary's school of business, knows why you procrastinate. And he's got the formula to prove it. Steel has just published his mathematical model for procrastination, and it looks a little something like this:

Utility = E x V / Γ D

What memories are made of? - Psychology News

SOURCE: Science Blog.com
FROM: University of Wisonsin, Milwaukee

Why is it that amnesia patients can't remember their names or addresses, but they do remember how to hold a fork? It's because memories come in many flavors, says Fred Helmstetter, professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UWM). Remembering what is not the same as remembering how.

Free Will... The Result, but...

Nice One.

You have just taken an action which is not determined by anything else (since the figure can be seen either way) and which you controlled (since you decided which way to see the figure).

The observations not only suggest that you have free will (a useful thing to know in other, perhaps more earth-shaking situations), but reveal some additional interesting characteristics of this attribute.

There is some chance that when you first saw the figure together with the two buttons, you did not in fact immediately see the arrows pointing in the direction in which you had decided to see them pointing.

What this indicates is that the power of free will does not extend to determining what you see; what you see at any given time is determined by actions of your brain which you cannot fully control (and of which you are not aware).

What you were, however, able to do is to withhold action until you did see the arrows pointing in the direction you had previously chosen. What this indicates is that one part of your brain (the part that contains YOU) is capable of observing the variable inputs of another part of your brain (the part that is responsible for what you see) and deciding whether or not to act based on the perception offered at any given time.

This may be a less potent "free will" than you might have wished you had but, if you think about it for a while, its actually not bad at all.

Free Will - The Practical Experiment

 

I wanted the arrows to point to the right, SAW them pointing to the right, and am GOING to the right

I wanted the arrows to point to the left, SAW them pointing to the left, and am GOING to the left

I forgot the instructions.  Can I go back please?