If information cannot be created/destroyed...

[arfa brane]

The information, knowledge, is a PROCESS not a physical object

The process is the chemical and electrical activity within the brain

It has no body which can / could be extracted and examined

Ah I see. A process isn't physical. That's a shame.
But you say this knowledge is in your brain, how then can you be aware of it if it isn't physical? Are you physical?

Not OK

Don't think it has anything to do with reversibility

ALL information is available and only awaiting suitable processing to be realised (brought forth)

Yes it does have everything to do with reversibility.
If ALL information is available, then you should be able to extract the position and velocity information for every particle in a gas at equilibrium, like Maxwell's demon.

So why can't you, or even a putative demon, do that? And seriously, you can't and nor can anyone, and for very good, nay rigorous, reasons.

 

[Thales]

Seattle, would you care to elaborate a bit further? I would say, I guess, I believe there is "free choice." But I am wondering if this idea lines up with your idea of "free will"? What are your assumptions? I'd love to listen closely to your more worked-out thoughts on this matter.

 

[Seattle]

Seattle, would you care to elaborate a bit further? I would say, I guess, I believe there is "free choice." But I am wondering if this idea lines up with your idea of "free will"? What are your assumptions? I'd love to listen closely to your more worked-out thoughts on this matter.

I don't have any worked-out thoughts beyond what I posted really. On the smallest (classical) level everything is definite. If you could track everything atom you would know the future state of everything therefore that's effectively pre-determined.

We don't function at that level (more or less like comparing source code with the higher level systems that we actually interact with (Windows). On our daily level there is some free choice (are we having pizza or hamburger). Even that is somewhat pre-determined. Not in some cosmic sense. It's just that much of what we do isn't conscious and if it's not consciously chosen it's not "free will". It's environment, genetics, it's the brain making a choice before it's consciously "chosen".

 

[Thales]

Well, that would be a further "type" of internalized division, namely what is "conscious" and its negation. I was asking roughly: What does the "free" in "free will" indicate, in your reckoning?

And how do you know what is not "consciously chosen", if that very selection/choice is strictly speaking "unfree"?

Thanks for your consideration.

 

[Seattle]

Well, that would be a further "type" of internalized division, namely what is "conscious" and its negation. I was asking roughly: What does the "free" in "free will" indicate, in your reckoning?

And how do you know what is not "consciously chosen", if that very selection/choice is strictly speaking "unfree"?

Thanks for your consideration.

Free to not make a choice, consciously. I may be free to chose pizza over hamburger but if you observe me for a while and know that I will always choose hamburger then I'm predictable and that's deterministic isn't it.

If I only pick hamburger or pizza and never Gyros that might be a cultural thing. If I don't eat grass that might be DNA related. If I'm addicted to caffeine, reaching for coffee might not be a very free choice either.

There were some experiments where someone's brain was "wired up" and they were presented with certain choices. Some choices were made by the unconscious parts of the brain before the conscious parts also made the choice (I've not described that in a very scientifically accurate way obviously).

 

[Dennis Tate]

If information cannot be created/destroyed as described here:

https://phys.org/news/2011-03-quantum-no-hiding-theorem-experimentally.html

Does this mean we do not really 'die'? A person, their memories, genome ect - is basically just accumulated information and despite the fact we/it /is/are (sorry don't know the correct syntax!) dispersed by entropy upon our death - does this mean that if a future culture (should it have the means and wish to do so) could conceivably resurrect anything and all that has lived?

Or, have I taken this study completely out of context? (would not be the first time, and probably wont be the last!)

If you do a search for the words "near death experience Life Review" you will find some information that I would think that you would consider relevant. I believe that all of us are like reality film stars in a massive eight billion star reality film series produced by the Creator who is composed of fundamental energy that is explained by String Theory.

 

[James R]

This thread is 5 years old. Probably better to start a new one rather than engaging in thread necromancy.