What Exactly IS Intelligence? (The nature of a \'Creator\')

by dhw, Wednesday, September 01, 2010, 14:42 (5196 days ago) @ BBella

BBELLA (on the subject of free will): But never will we have the choice to choose more than we are capable of choosing or than we have available to us.-ROMANSH: Free will is not about making choices per se. The question I have to ask is which bit of me is independent of my environment, which bit of me can somehow circumnavigate the law of mass action without falling into some probabilistic hole which is no better?-Ideally, perhaps we should have opened a new thread for this subject, but let's see how far it takes us. I'm not sure that I understand the second half of the question Romansh has to ask, but I agree with the rest and with Matt's highly pertinent question regarding human creativity. David has asked for a definition, and I'm going to make my usual bid for glory by offering one of my own. How about this: the conscious ability to make decisions independently of constraints beyond one's own control? "Decisions" encompasses creativity and, I think, all other human activities, including choices.-I would extend Romansh's question especially to the genetic make-up, and I would apply it to BBella's comment that we can't choose more than we are capable of choosing. What is it that defines and restricts our capability of choosing or deciding? I can only repeat the problem I tried to outline in my discussion with Romansh: to what extent are we controlled by our genes, our upbringing, our environment? To what extent can we control our own circumstances and experiences, and our reactions to circumstances and experiences that we do not create for ourselves? Some religious sects believe in predestination, but I don't think any of us would accept that, so I hope we can ignore it. However, it could be argued that our genes, environment etc. also predestine us. Despite Pinker's figure of 40% to 50%, I don't see how we can quantify escapable and inescapable influences ... which is a typically agnostic way of saying I don't know to what extent our will is free. However, I'm with Romansh again in conceding "that I feel like I have free will and that my ego appears to behave in such a manner."