[MD] experience

[Case]

[Craig]
"The ques-tion of whether an electron does a certain thing because it has to
or because it wants to is completely irrelevant to the data of what the
electron does." "The difference between these two points of view is
philosophic, not scientific."
[RMP, Lila, Chap. 12]

[Case]
> Would you be willing to apply that same logic to people?

[Craig]
An electron & other such particles operate only at the inorganic level.
People operate at all levels.
Consider the following:  Suspend 2 magnets by a thread near each other.
What happens?
"The North & South ends of the magnet are attracted to each other."
Attracted to each other?  Like people are attracted to each other?
"Well, no.  'Attracted to each other' is a phrase a schoolteacher would use.
A scientist would say there is a magnetic force that forces the ends
together."
So, besides the 2 ends of the magnets, there is a 3rd thing--a force.  What
4th thing does the force use to force the ends of the magnets together?
"There is no 4th thing.  The magnetic force itself forces the 2 ends
together."
So when the magnetic force is there, the 2 ends are forced together.  And
when the magnetic force isn't there, the 2 ends aren't forced together."
"Well, no.  Wherever there are magnets, the magnetic force is always there."
Then what explanatory role does the force play?  All you really have is the
2 ends of the magnets coming together.  You might as well say that's what
they prefer to do.

[Case]
It seems to me what you outline above are instances where the causal factors
are relatively simple and easy to define at the inorganic level. Magnets can
operate fine underwater. They would work under many hundreds of Gs. I don't
know the exact number but I suspect they function with a temperature range
of hundreds of degree. They are not impacted by the amount of light
available or the smell roses. They do not require food. In short many of the
causal factors that come into play with living things do not affect magnets.

Living things contain feedback loops requiring a host of environmental
conditions to be balanced in order to function. All of these produce cause
and effect relationships that influence or cause the behavior of a complex
organism.

So if it is OK to say that magnets behave the way they do because they
"prefer" to do so, is that equivalent to saying that humans behave as they
do because their behavior is determined?