The future is set, you do things because you had to do them.?

Question

for every action there is a reaction. But the action itself was a reaction. I dont know how the universe began, but that defined it all. This is why, maybe a thousand years in the future, we will have a computer that analyzes every single movement of every single atom fast enough to predict infinetly into the future. Agree or disagree?

Please no superscientist talk. I'm only 12, I want to understand you.

To Heather--
Yes, the way people act is determined by, as you said, their mental tools, but their mental tools are determined by their genetics and interactions with society. Those are determined by a lot of things, but in the end it goes back to the creation, or happenence, of the universe. So people are just one big, much more complicated predictable.

To the other guy, just below Heather, forgot the name:
Thats why I said a thousand years. In fact, its probably a lot less, as Hawking says we will find the 'theory of everything' within the next hundred years.

Answer 1

Heisenburg's uncertainty principal means that the exact position AND velocity of a particle can not be known. This is nothing to do with the accuracy of our measuring equipment, this is a physics quantum mechanics FACT.

So, if the exact position and velocity of all particles was known, then yes you would be able to predict the future perfectly. The uncertainty principal means this is impossible. The uncertaintly principal has been proved to be FACT (and not conjecture) by experimentation.

Consider the LED (the little bulb like in your computer monitor telling you it is turned on, often green or red). The LED can only emit light due to quantum tunnelling. According to classical physics, quantum tunnelling is a miracle but quantum mechanics makes it possible because of the uncertainty principal. It is through the uncertaintly principal that energy conservation can be violated enough for alpha radioactive decay to occur etc. Many 'normal' physics effects you take for granted rely heavily on the validity of the uncertainty principal.

And it is due to the uncertainty principal that your theory above (whilst true) is un-usable.


NOTE: Human thought is not random, it is simply the result of the programming of your brain, which is the result of nature and upbringing, which are both the result of your parents etc etc

Answer 2

such computer will have to be made from atoms, so when scanning for future will also have to scan itself. Obvious, that is a problem. The computer atoms will change in a way that depends by the predicted future, but when they change the same the future because the analyzed data change.
In other words, you can not predict a system from the system.

"the theory of every thing" is just a nice theory. it started with an equation and than changed the universe so the equation be correct. From logical point of view is neither true or false, just a guess.

Are you sure you are only 12??? I was a lot older when I asked my self this kind of questions and I know many people that do not understand me.

Mawkish, Heisenberg's uncertainty does not have influence over the future, quantum "noise" does not reach macroworld... whatever, this is other discussion

Answer 3

Thats a really good question and its the first one that has stumped me all night.

In terms of atoms, yes everything has a preset order and will ultimately carry out its specific function, so yes it could be possible to eventually monitor these actions to the point of predicting their next move.

In terms of people, its much more complicated. Each person reacts to a situation in a different manner using the mental "tools" that they have developed or had implemented in them by the parents, teachers, psycologists etc. No person can ever truly be predicted because it is impossible for anyone to understand another person fully. I will never understand you, even if we become best friends and we tell each other differently. We have different "tools."

As for the world, people (the unpredictable) and atoms (the predictable) do influece each other. When you have one element that cannot be controlled, you cannot reach 100% confidence in knowing the future. Because people manipulate atoms, we can no longer see the course that they will take. People are notorious for messing up the natural order of things. If our behavioral patterns remain the same through out the rest of time, it would be reasonable to say that a super-computer could be atleast close to accurate in determining the future. But, if the behavior patterns should change and continue to do so, it would be impossible.

Not sure if that's what the question was, but I hope I made sense!

Answer 4

Computers will never be able to fully predict things for various reasons. It is impossible to know exactly what the starting conditions are. It is not possible to measure both the location and velocity of every particle. This is something that Heisenberg discovered in his uncertainty principle. Also the complexity of just the interaction of a few particles quickly overwhelms any computer.

You would need to know the location and velocity of each particle in the universe or you would get an inaccurate result. This needs a computer much bigger than the universe.

So while you might be able to predict a few things to better accuracy with better computers like with the weather you can't predict everything.

Answer 5

That's what I told the Judge but he didn't go for it.

OK no superscientist talk... seriously even if it is possible to consider the whole of spacetime as a frozen block - that doesn't mean we don't have freewill.

Think of it this way - a decision you make in the future might in some sense have been made since the beginning of time - but that doesnt mean it wasnt your decision!

What about the past? You can't change any decision you made then - they're frozen in the past and yet you have no problem believing they were your choices? The future is no different.

**Oh and one other thing - no computer will ever be able to predict the velocity and position of all particles because its not physically possible - even in principle - to know the velocity and postion of a single particle - this is Heisenberg's uncertainty principle and is one of the founding ideas in quantum mechanics.

Answer 6

First of all, you have a wrong belief system you are asking your question from. We call this a wrong presupposition.

You begain you question by saying, 'The future is set'. When you believe this it will mess up all your other thinking. The correct way of thinking is believing that 'the future is NOT set' but that the future is actually somewhat OPEN. We call this 'The Openness of God' or 'Open Theology'. When you get an understanding that the future is NOT all predetermined and NOT all predecided or predestinated (damning theology by John Calvin, Augustine, Luther and most Protestant reformers and Catholics) but indeed OPEN, it will change your life and the way you live forever!

You will be more responsible with your choices since your choices determine your habits, character, and eventually your destiny (where you will go now and for eternity).

You will be more of an 'activist' than a 'passivist'. In other words, you will be more active in changing society because you know the future is not determined but left up to you and I to change!

You will pray differently because you understand that God is active with creation and wants to partner with us to 'see His Kingdom come and His will being done'.

You will get involved in evangelism and missions and social work for the same reason: because your decisions and your involvement actually changes history and changes God's mind! Imagine that! We can change God's mind! You can be a HISTORY MAKER! Your life is important and valuable.

I have much more to say. I have an entire teaching on this subject on my website at: www.gomitch2.com. Look for the teaching entitled, 'Does God Know Everything?' The answer is: NO.

You will see from Holy Scripture how God did NOT indeed know everything about the future but only knows everything about reality right now and knows all the possiblities of the futures and those possibilities only become realities to God when they actually happen. Oh, the wisdom and greatness of God!

Answer 7

No superscientist talk, I promise.

What the world is heading to is a mixture of humanoids and robots, sometimes getting confusing as to which is which, while humans will begin possessing bionic parts that make them quasi-robotic.

I don't think that's far out, and neither a stretch of the imagination.

It's already on the drawing boards of many of the smaller type corporations springing up today, having some kind of technological innovation.

Computers, robots, gadgets are already here.

More and more of improved versions lie ahead.

Whether this all benefits mankind and earth...jury is still out.

Thanks.

Answer 8

a million. Brian, Noelle, Bridget, Nora, Alana, Colin, Juliet + Annaliese and Charles (Charlie for short) 2. Liam, Gemma, Eli + Adele and Rylan 3. Mia, Reid + Lacie and Harry 4. Alexa, Vienna, Charlize, + Saffron and Jayden 5. Arielle, Serena + Laila and Caleb 6. Clara, Duncan, Gretchen + Annie and James 7. Audrey, Lucy, Elliot + Claire and Samuel Cool names! i like Noelle, Bridget, Alana, Liam Alexa, Serana, Clara and Elliott! My ordinary names are: Annabelle William thank you....it grew to become into superb to work out a distinctive style of game :) x

Answer 9

If future is set..we don't need to know it..anyways we can't do anything about it....if it is not set....the machine is not possible....