Hey, Wisecrack – it’s brainy-Jared here,
Helen.
And today, we’re talking about the first
season of one of the most cerebral animes
out there, Psycho-Pass.
“Justice is subject to dispute; might is
easily recognized and not disputed.
So we cannot give might to justice.”
“Sorry, but I have long since learned as
a measure of elementary hygiene to be on guard
when anyone quotes Pascal.”
Yeah, they’re shit-talking each other by
quoting philosophy, and it’s amazing.
Set in a dystopian Japan where everything
is controlled by a seemingly omniscient computer,
the Sibyl System, Psycho-Pass asks some pretty
hefy questions.
Namely, is it possible for a computer to determine
everything about us, "The occupation apptitude
test gurantees you a stable life, in which
your talents are used to the fullest.
Humans will live a more civilized life.
The OAT has created a world where anyone can
enjoy art, nature, and peace," and more importantly,
would we want to live in a society without
free will?
"Attaining a logical society in which various
contradictions and inequalities are resolved.
That is indeed, the ultimate happiness sought
by the rational human mind.
By achieving an absolutely perfect system,
Sibyl has become an existence that embodies
that ideal."
Well, as it happens, this question isn’t
just about philosophy, but also science.
So sit down, shut up, and let disembodied
Helen explain how the Sibyl System just might
suggest that free will is a neurological and
societal illusion in this Wisecrack Edition
on the Science and Philosophy of Pyscho-Pass.
And cue sirens…
That’s what we do with spoilers, right?
Also, covering ALL the sexy smart stuff in
this series would be impossible to do in one
video, so if you wanna hear Jared break it
down some more, let us know in the comments.
First, a quick recap for the uninitiated.
In the world of Psycho-Pass, the Sibyl System
determines everything about you, from your
job to the likelihood that you’ll commit
a crime, all by constantly scanning your brain
and keeping you under surveillance.
This handy-dandy, all-encompassing reading
is called your Psycho-Pass, and it’s what
the Sibyl System uses to make all its decisions
about you.
”In this era, the System determines everyone’s
aptitudes and we all have no choice but to
live by it and be satisfied with only a happiness
forced upon us, as we are unable to make our
real dreams come true.”
Enter Akane Tsunemori, a newbie inspector
at the Criminal Investigations Department,
or CID.
It’s kind of like being a cop, except instead
of following the law, you’re following the
System’s directions.
“But we still don’t know for sure if he
ran away."
“The Sibyl System will make that decision.”
And instead of police dogs, you get Enforcers
– who are basically would-be criminals that
the System has granted limited freedom to
in exchange for, well... not a lot.
Now, you might think that a legal system based
off a computer scanning your brain is some
Minority Report level bullsh*t.
You have free will, so you shouldn’t be
arrested before you actually commit a crime,
right?
Well, let me stop you right there.
As Psycho-Pass illustrates, it’s not quite
that simple.
First, we have to understand what the brain
– and the decision making process – really
is.
Most neuroscientists today think there are
two systems in the brain.
The first system is “us” – that little
voice in our heads, those emotions we feel,
all those thoughts we “think”.
It’s the stuff we’re actually aware of.
When we make a decision, this is the system
where we like to think it happens, but that’s
not entirely the case.
Below this system is another system, a huge
lattice work of neurons that controls everything
from spatial processing to breathing.
Importantly, this second system is a black
box.
No matter how much armchair philosophizing
we do, we can’t penetrate it.
And this is where science of free will comes
in.
See, in the 1980’s, Dr. Benjamin Libet conducted
a pretty groundbreaking experiment.
He asked subjects to look at a clock, then
at a time of their own choosing, flick their
wrist.
Libet then recorded the electrical impulses
from their brain – called the readiness
potential – and compared it with the time
the subjects believed they made the decision
to flick their wrist.
The results?
Readiness potential proceeded the subjects’
awareness of making the decision by about
half a second.
In other words, the decision to flick their
wrist happened somewhere in the unconscious
system about half a second before they THOUGHT
they made the decision; kind of like thunder
following lightning.
And while Libet’s experiment wasn’t without
flaws – like how he relied on self-reporting
– it’s important to note that other researchers
have born out similar results in experiments
that were better controlled.
While we can’t say for sure that there’s
a causal relationship here, we can say that
on some level, it looks like the decision
making process begins in this unconscious
part of the brain.
Which makes you wonder: are we really completely
in control of the choices we make?
And if we’re not, how can we say they’re
ours?
Libet’s experiment goes a long way in making
sense of Psycho-Pass’s world.
After all, why would anyone let a computer
make preemptive judgements about them, ordering
every facet of their lives?
Well, because a very smart computer like the
Sibyl System can have a deep understanding
of the brain’s black box, in a sense knowing
us better than we know ourselves.
Hell, the System knows the inner workings
of the unconscious mind so well that it can
even identify likely criminals as toddlers.
“I was flagged in a Psycho-Pass test when
I was five.
I've been a latent criminal ever since.
No possibility for rehabilitation through
treatment.
That’s why I’m here now.”
In a sense, the relationship between the Sibyl
System and its citizens is parallel to the
relationship between the two systems in our
brain.
The citizens mull about with all their feelings,
thoughts, and seeming choices, while literally
thousands of feet below their feet is a vast
network of sensors, processors, and fiber
optic cables all in charge of controlling
them.
But if our unconscious mind is affecting our
conscious decisions, we have to wonder: what,
then, is affecting our unconscious mind?
If we hear subliminal messages saying “love
Logan Paul”, are we going to actually like
him?
Unsurprisingly, the Sibyl System takes the
question of what can affect its citizens’
minds very seriously.
The system is practically obsessed with keeping
the mental states of its citizenry squeaky
clean, so much so that it measures the stress
levels of public spaces constantly.
Imagine walking around the mall peacefully
minding your own business when, bam, your
Psycho-Pass reading changes and this guy comes
up to you.
With this obsession of keeping its citizens
“healthy”, it’s also not surprising
that the System will also black out the press
for the “public good.”
“When people found out, the area stress
jumped four levels.
It was so bad even a news ban was imposed.”
And it goes without saying that other forms
of expression – like music and art – are
also limited.
This is pretty much an Orwellian nightmare
of the first degree.
But is the Sibyl System wrong to control freedom
of speech?
"Back in the day, even if the art was designated
harmful, someone would protect it in the net
archives.
Are there no longer any kids with guts like
that?"
"People like that would be behind bars with
you, thanks to the Sibyl system."
As frightening as it may sound, science, at
least, might say “no.”
As it turns out, human beings are world-class
imitators.
We’re so good, in fact, that we do it innately
without even realizing it.
Research performed by Andrew Meltzoff has
shown that infants imitate even the most ludicrous
of actions.
14 month olds, for example, will do dumb sh*t
like use their foreheads instead of the fingers
to turn on a touch sensor light simply by
watching an adult do it.
Now, there’s evidence to suggest that children
are such good imitators because the parts
of their brain that control inhibition aren’t
fully developed.
But just because we’re not wearing diapers
doesn’t mean adults are any less likely
to imitate their peers.
In fact, humans are so susceptible to imitation
that just perceiving an action performed by
another person will drastically increase the
likelihood of them emulating it.
This is called the Chameleon Effect, and it
all has to do with a special set of brain
cells called mirror neurons that fire when
we watch others perform an action.
This goes on during all of our interactions
without us ever noticing it.
And that’s the key takeaway: it happens
automatically and subconsciously.
It happens in that impenetrable system of
our brain.
So, why would the Sibyl System need to crack
down on crime before crime happens?
Because behavior is contagious, and that means
everything from laughing to violence.
And when we’re exposed to the latter, even
in the regular world, there are consequences.
And this seems to be the case in the world
of Psycho-Pass.
When the city is flooded with low grade criminals
wearing helmets that stop the Sibyl System
from reading their Psycho-Pass, we see violence
spread to the normal citizens with an almost
gleeful contagion.
“The brutality is spreading like a contagion.
The psycho-hazard has gotten this big?”
“It’s more than that.
At this point, it’s turned into a riot.”
“The area stress level is rising like crazy,
too.
It’s not just helmet people who are going
on a rampage."
So, whether it’s in your brain or on the
streets, it’s clear that the Sibyl System
is bent on removing agency from its citizens.
“As long as you’re a puppet of Sibyl,
you can never experience that.
The weight of decision and free will.”
And this is where we get to the question at
the heart of Psycho-Pass: what is the value
of living in a society without free will?
It’s exactly this question that drives Shogo
Makishima, the first season’s antagonist.
Makishima is driven to test the value of free
will in a society where it’s been rendered
meaningless.
“By analyzing a bio-organism’s force field
read by a cymatic scan, they figure out how
a person’s mind works.
The intelligence of science has finally uncovered
the secret of souls, and this society changed
drastically.
However, people’s wills aren’t part of
that assessment.
I wonder what criteria you use to divide people
into good and evil.
I want to see the splendor of people’s souls.
I want to check and see if it really is precious.
However, when humans base their lives around
the Sibyl Oracle without ever consulting their
own wills, do they really hold any value?"
In positing the necessity of free will, Makishima
borrows a page from Wisecrack favorite Immanuel
Kant, who believed that you can only be moral
by following moral laws out of your own free
will.
And Makishima goes to insane lengths to see
the worth of people’s will, enabling criminal
after criminal who wants to test their will
against the System.
But Makishima is the baddie, so does that
mean that Akane believes the opposite?
Is she the Sibyl System’s number one fan,
going all in for the belief that free will
must be squashed for the greater collective
good?
Well, not really.
Throughout the series, Akane displays a unique
sense of individualism.
She was such a good student that the System
determined she’d be a good fit in literally
any industry.
"To start with, it was indicated that you
have an apptitude for jobs at the ministry
of economy and the ministry of technology,
and yet, you rejected them all and picked
the public safety bureau, right?"
And after she joins the CID, Akane, early
on, questions the merit of blindly following
the Sibyl System’s orders, "She's just confused!
You don't have to use violence on her!"
Culminating with her disobeying her boss’
order to kill her enforcer, Shinya Kogami.
“For a target whose crime coefficient is
under 300, Paralyzer mode should be used.”
And although she begrudgingly allows the System
to remain by the end of the first season,
she does so on her own terms.
“We're always aiming for a better society.
One day, someone will come to this room to
turn off the power.
We will find a new path.
You can count on it.
There is no place for the Sibyl System in
our future!”
In this sense, Akane represents a sort of
middle ground.
Sure, maybe the unconscious mind or the Sibyl
System influences her decisions, but ultimately
they’re still hers to make.
Despite reaffirming a System that strips her
of some agency, Akane herself manages to preserve
the semblance of free will.
But in the end, Akane can’t actually stop
Makishima.
That role falls to Kogami.
Now we could say a lot about why Makshima
values Kogami so much more than Akane, but
I think it has to do with this: “Everyone
is alone.
Everyone is empty.
People no longer have need of others.
You can always find a spare for any talent.
Any relationship can be replaced.
I had gotten bored of a world like that.”
By letting the Sibyl System dictate your life,
Makishima believes you stop becoming an individual.
Without free will, you’re not a human, but
merely a cog in the machine.
Maybe this is why Kogami – the man who’s
willing to live as a fugitive from the System
in order to stop Makishima is the only the
one Makishima cares about.
By the season’s end, Kogami is the only
who acts freely, and in this sense, he’s
the only one Makishima has a real relationship
with in this world.
“So, what do you think Kogami?
After this, will you be able to find a replacement
for me?”
“Well, I sure hope not.”
What makes the world of Psycho-Pass so frightening
is that unlike other shows, this dystopian
society isn’t the result of paranoia or
crisis management, but of scientific progress.
So, what do you guys think?
Is free-will all that great, or even real?
Or would we all be better off letting a supercomputer
call
the shots?
