Know what’ll really bake your noodle? An MRI will show your brain firing to move your arm before your “higher” brain function sends the signal.
Your brain fires and then sends an executive summary to the homunculus behind your eyeballs saying, “Good job! ‘You’ moved your arm!” And you believe in free will?
“You” really are just an observer of biological programming playing out. Even your “higher” brain functions are still being observed by someone. They are a response to the more “base” biology, but they are still programmed responses.
“You” is an incredibly tricky word to define. Is your body you? Is your brain you? Is the set of chemical reactions we call consciousness you? Is only the subset of that set of chemical reactions that’s capable of saying “I am me” you?
I stuck my arm out towards a cat today and it scratched me. What me did it scratch? If my arm gets amputated because that scratch gets infected, have I lost a part of myself, or have I simply lost some thing that belongs to me?
Know what’ll really bake your noodle? An MRI will show your brain firing to move your arm before your “higher” brain function sends the signal.
Your brain fires and then sends an executive summary to the homunculus behind your eyeballs saying, “Good job! ‘You’ moved your arm!” And you believe in free will?
You think that’s air you’re breathing now?
“You” really are just an observer of biological programming playing out. Even your “higher” brain functions are still being observed by someone. They are a response to the more “base” biology, but they are still programmed responses.
“You” is an incredibly tricky word to define. Is your body you? Is your brain you? Is the set of chemical reactions we call consciousness you? Is only the subset of that set of chemical reactions that’s capable of saying “I am me” you?
I stuck my arm out towards a cat today and it scratched me. What me did it scratch? If my arm gets amputated because that scratch gets infected, have I lost a part of myself, or have I simply lost some thing that belongs to me?