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The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 29, 2025

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients
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Quantum propensities in the brain cortex and free will.

Danko D Georgiev1

  • 1Institute for Advanced Study, 30 Vasilaki Papadopulu Str., Varna 9010, Bulgaria.

Bio Systems
|July 9, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Quantum physics offers a solution to the free will problem. This study quantifies free will in the brain, finding the cortex exhibits over 96 terabytes per second of free will.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Quantum Physics
  • Philosophy of Mind

Background:

  • Classical physics and determinism pose challenges to free will and moral responsibility.
  • Quantifying personal biases and free will is difficult within deterministic frameworks.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To resolve the conflict between determinism and free will by utilizing quantum indeterminism.
  • To derive a quantitative measure for the amount of free will in the brain's cortical network.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing the inherent indeterminism of quantum physics.
  • Modeling the brain's interaction with the environment as a quantum measurement process.
  • Quantifying free will using expected information gain from neural activity.
Keywords:
ChoiceConscious agentDeterminismInformation gainQuantum indeterminismSynapse

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Main Results:

  • Neuronal electric spikes in sensory/somatomotor pathways show deterministic vesicle release (no free will).
  • Cortical synapses exhibit indeterministic vesicle release (0.35 probability per spike).
  • The brain cortex demonstrates over 96 terabytes per second of free will.

Conclusions:

  • Free will, rooted in quantum indeterminism, can be quantitatively measured in the brain.
  • The unpredictability of cortical decisions offers an evolutionary advantage for survival.
  • Free will may be a selectable trait optimized through natural selection.