Consciousness: Egnor on determinism and free will (General)

by David Turell , Tuesday, February 26, 2019, 15:38 (1878 days ago) @ dhw

DAVID: Quantum confusion most play a role in how we view this since we know quantum mechanics plays a large role in our bodies.

dhw: I find quantum confusion confusing, and don’t know how it can settle the argument either way.

DAVID: You are not alone. Results depend on the observer.
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2194747-quantum-experiment-suggests-there-really-a...

QUOTE:"There are no objective facts in the world. This isn’t a statement about fake news. Rather, it is the implication of an experiment that suggests the nature of reality depends on who is looking".

dhw: Well, well, well. If humans and animals weren’t here, there would be no stars, no planets, no universe, because “there are no objective facts in the world”. Here is my sensational counter-hypothesis: if there were no minds in the objectively existing universe, there would be no minds to observe and interpret the objectively existing universe.

And from “Transmitting sound waves”

QUOTE: "Without brains of human and animals to interpret the air vibration into sounds that we experience, there is no sound at all, only soundless air vibration. The entire universe is in fact ‘silent’. Sound only really exists in human’s and animals’ minds".

dhw: I suggest that if there were no minds to hear the sound of thunder, there would be no minds to hear the sound of thunder. By the same token, I do not believe that if there were no minds to see the universe, the universe would consist of nothing but light waves.

It is like if 'a tree falls in the forest and no one around to hear it' was there sound (?), and the answer is no. It takes a mind to hear it but the bacteria in the soil would feel the vibrations. Hot, cold, rough, smooth, sweet, sour, etc. are all living interpretations of physically inert properties.