@Zetetic11235,
Zetetic11235;86992 wrote:My point was that the logical path proceeds from a decision, and each step requires a decision to continue following it. The logical path itself has nothing to do with the decision to follow it. I am curious about what mechanism decision making follows, as it does not appear to be logical, but rather as you say, 'aus dem bauch' (I only know a little German).
You say the logical path has nothing to do with the decision to follow it, i agree, although i tend to say, making a decision does not equal following a logical path, that sounds less excluding.
I haven't really worked on a definition of the word 'decision' before this thread, however 'aus dem Bauch'
i would call a decision:
To make a choice based upon an evaluating system.
For a computer this evaluation will most of the times be based on common logic (although not even this is necessary. Look at games for example, their rules are many times based on their own particular logic. The (basic) logic of programming will always be the common one. However the built up logic can differ a lot. Just like language does. )
Now, Gretel's decision has only points of contact with common logic.
She may calculate the price and then make a completely contradictory decision.
Her evaluating system takes in account very subjective qualities.
How big are the apples (not so subjective)? What colour do they have (highliy intuitive)? How do they taste (very subjective - based on intuition)?
In former times we would have had to admit that this is a kind of evaluating system that can not be analysed by any common logic, however nowadays it's different.
If we look at the way neuronal networks are organized we get a little bit of a picture.
The different neurons have their particular weights, of course there can be billions of real neurons included in such a process.
That makes it understandable why the decision is sometimes hard to find for humans.
There are billions of neurons putting their weight into the -> measurement - and that's what it is with humans, it's not a logical calculation, it's a measurement of neuronal weights.
Our consciousness kind of controls which weights are taken into account, although to be honest, i believe, our consciousness has no idea, that actually our subconscious is the leader who decides what is taken into account.
For example Gretel might not even consider the colour of an apple.
She wonders how they taste and doesn't even realize how her subconscious analyses the colour and surface.
The same when you look at an attractive girl.
When you come to the conclusion that she has an interesting character your subconscious has already checked one thousand aspects of genetical compatibility.
I hope i could add something to your investigation on what a decision is [edit: or how a human decision works]. (?)
Thanks for the links, i will see if i can get something about nonlinear functions.
