OSB: Chapter One Chapter one of Opening Skinner’s Box focuses on the namesake of the book, B.F. Skinner. The experiments described all focus on Skinner’s primary study, that of ‘operant conditioning’. Skinner brought into question the concept of free will, instead believing that all human decisions are the result of consequences, both positive and negative. He felt that through a system of positive reinforcement, entire countries could be changed to compliant citizens. In fact, the book tells us, he openly admitted that he hoped to one day use his studies for fascist goals in the nation. His primary experiment was conducted on rats that he placed in a box, and taught to step on a treadle to receive a food pellet. He experimented both with consistency, intervals, and random deliverance of the food and found that the rats did not cease to rely on the process to gain food. However, after cutting off the rewards, he found that the rats did indeed stop their efforts. Although the author of the book proceeds to interview esteemed colleagues who believe firmly in free will and dismiss Skinner’s theory, the overall mystery of the experiment remains. At first I was thrilled by the chapter and excited by the meshing of the author’s artistic writing and the scientific experiments and interviews she describes. However, I must say I enjoyed the project far less when writing a summary of the mere experiment. As a reader and student, the author’s style and stories added and enriched my experience of B.F. Skinner’s work. Although it was a disappointment to re-direct my summaries and analyses towards merely the experiments, it also pushed me to try and apply the principles to my life, or even the human experience with which I am familiar. It seems that the chapter only complicated an already intricate question, rather than shedding light on the topic of free will, it presented