Free Will in Biology and Neuroscience

More than any other kind of scholar, neuroscientists recently fueled the discussion about free will. In this chapter, we will see that the understanding of humans as a machines has existed already in the eighteenth century. Yet, different conceptions of freedom can be found in biology. Contrary to what is often said, the Libet experiment supports the assumption of a conscious and in this sense free will, instead of refuting it. This does not change even with newer experiments in fMRI scanners.