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If We Have Free Will, Then So Do Electrons
snahgle writes "Mathematicians John Conway (inventor of the Game of Life) and Simon Kochen of Princeton University have proven that if human experimenters demonstrate 'free will' in choosing what measurements to take on a particle, then the axioms of quantum mechanics require that the free will property be available to the particles measured, or to the universe as a whole. Conway is giving a series of lectures on the 'Free Will Theorem' and its ramifications over the next month at Princeton. A followup article strengthening the theory (PDF) was published last month in Notices of the AMS." Update: 03/19 14:20 GMT by KD : jamie points out that we discussed this theorem last year, before the paper had been published.
Is this an early April fool?
They take as axiomatic *both* "instantaneous spooky action at a distance" *and* "information can't travel faster than light". Since those two principles are contradictory they can prove anything they damned well like by assuming they are both true!!!
Is your reaction, what you say nowadays, when your tiny little brain is not able to comprehend such deep thoughts?
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAA
Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
defining free will as "being in a state that cannot be fully determined by past events" is the most contrived and artificial "definition" of free will that I have ever seen. In fact to even call this a definition of free will is pretty ridiculous, as it bears little if any resemblance to the "free will" that is generally referred to in either metaphysical OR real-world discussions of same.
If anybody thinks that these people are referring to the "free will" that is commonly referred to in other discussions of the topic, they are mistaken. This definition is set in a completely different context and is very self-serving.