Robert M. Sapolsky

I don't think I've read anything by the author before. I heard him on Sam Harris' podcast. There doesn't seem to be anything philosophically new here (I wrote the same thing in an Anthropology blue book in 1972 and the TA gave me a D and wrote a vulgar comment.); macroscopic determinism excludes free will. But what I enjoyed so much was the author's careful development of his argument and the huge number of small neuroscientific, behavioral, psychological, and evolutionary facts that he uses. I liked his use of epilepsy, schizophrenia, autism, and obesity as examples of the progression of our understanding of these conditions (and I was reminded that tuberculosis was considered a disease of artists, wayward women, and Jews before the discovery of Mycobacteria, and that gastric ulcers were considered a stress-related illness common in white bankers before the re-discovery of Helicobacter pylori).

The second part of the book is Sapolsky's look at the consequences of living in a world in which the absence of free will was accepted. Although he shows that some changes might be possible, especially in his review of the Norwegian penal system, changing the view of other aspects of our life, e.g. Are we really ready to say that all of our personal achievements are due to chance?, are enormously challenging. To say nothing of the effect on Hollywood if revenge movies were seen as ridiculous.… (more)

This is an amazing book; I don't think I have ever learned as much from one book as I did from this one. As a non-scientist, it was not an easy read, despite an eminently readable (and frequently very funny) prose style. It was well worth the effort, however. So much for the matter of the book, what about the conclusion? That is very challenging, as the author acknowledges. I find myself in the odd position of intellectually accepting his arguments, but emotionally ignoring them. I think the idea of no free will may take quite a while to move from my head to my heart, if it ever does.… (more)

Monumental book. It definitely opened up new mental doors for me.

It is rare to find such a generous book these days.

For being non-fiction the thread is clear and captivating. You peel each layer of behavior (from the brain signals all the way to your culture). The last few chapters, the author makes observations and social commentary with strong ideas.
The one that struck me the most is that after understanding how much all the biological factors play into our behavior (you have to read the book), do we still have free will? is it still fair to shame and guilt-trip people for their shortfalls? The whole notion of “punishment” is re-examined and questioned.… (more)