There are also complications with free will. I believe the illusion of free will comes from emergent properties of the universe where every particle follows the

There are also complications with free will. I believe the illusion of free will comes from emergent properties of the universe where every particle follows the rules fastidiously with no exceptions. I find this realization gives me comfort in a way that religion never has, because I merely have to drift along with the universe, taking in its wonders while the things that happen must happen because of the interplay of particles and interactions. Of course I can "choose" to do things, but I do so with the underlying understanding that "I" am not in control. >For instance, there is no validity to this theory, since Sapolsky could not have come up with an alternate theory by his own free will. Actually there is no contradiction or paradox here; of course he couldn't have come up with an alternate theory because of his initial configuration. And had he done so, there would be a physical explanation for it, buried in the complexities of reality. I do desire for someone to somehow prove the existence of free will, but I've yet to discover a theory that allows for someone who is made of stuff to not behave as stuff does. Show me a soul particle or way to influence a human body, singly and consistently, and I'll change my views. On the other hand, I've seen(personally) too many humans change their fundamental behavior due to illness, old age, and drugs. Do they have the free will to change? Or why could their spirit not have resisted these affronts to what their previous selves would have considered core behavior? I'm not sure science is the proper domain to remit these questions.