All of your decisions are already made for you by a neurological subroutine, everything you enjoy is the result of interacting electrical and chemical stimuli, and everything you do is ultimate no different from what a machine with identical programming would do in your place; so how do you find meaning as a machine in a clockwork world?

Interesting question. There are a lot of possible answers here.

The simplest one, from a physical perspective: quantum superpositions. See, subatomic particles have different spins, and those spins can affect the way they react with some other particles. Quantum superpositions are a strange phenomenon in which a single particle is spinning in two different directions at the same time. Now, obviously this state can't exist physically. So, what happens is, once a particle interacts with it, it settles into one of the two possible spins. But exactly which spin it settles into is determined randomly, adding an element of true randomness into life. So not everything is truly as predictable as it seems.

But that still doesn't exactly address the issue your question seems to be getting at, which is the lack of free will. So, from a physical standpoint again, the answer to that would be the theory of the multiverse. In the example mentioned above, I said that the spin of the particle is determined randomly. But that is not necessarily true - another very strong possibility is that two sets of parallel universes are created, one for each possible spin the particle has. Of course, you couldn't know for sure, because you only ever observe one universe at a time.

Which leads to the next question: how is it decided which universe you observe? You could say randomness again. But, if randomness is really the product of branching parallel universes, this just creates a deeper set of universes, and those create another, and so on and so on - an infinity of universes in which nothing is resolved and the answer is still unknown. But there actually is another answer as well. Put simply, it's possible that you can choose. Not consciously, of course. But your desires, your emotions, and maybe a little bit of others', could determine which universe you observe. Which would mean that, unconsciously at least, you do have free will. Just not in the way you think you do.

As for meaning, well, that seems to be a different question entirely. But for me, the meaning of life would really depend on what life itself is. Is reality just a construct of my own mind, and nothing else exists? Is it the conscious creation of some greater being - or maybe the unconscious creation of one? Or is it just a sea of probability, the random chances that something real might exist manifesting in the most physical way possible? As of now, we can't know, and I doubt we ever will. But each possibility has its own meaning.

If life is truly nonexistent, a construct of my own or someone else's mind, then you might say it has no meaning. And you would be right. But I would counter with the argument that all that means is that you have the opportunity to make your own meaning. If nothing is real, then is not reality whatever you wish it to be? So why not choose the meaning of happiness? Or enjoyment, rather; happiness seems to imply a sort of quiet contentment, while enjoyment can be as slow or as exhilarating as you wish. If life is truly meaningless, why not have fun with it?

Or, it could be just a random chance. Maybe everything does exist, but there was no real purpose to it - simply a roll of the dice, one of an infinity of possible outcomes. And in this case, I would again suggest the same thing as above - make your own meaning. Do what you want to do, create what you want to create, achieve what you want to achieve; it's your life, so why shouldn't you?

And if we are the creation of some being with powers beyond us, then I would say that the meaning of life is to serve their purpose. Because if we are all cogs in a machine, as complex and randomized as that machine may be, is our purpose then not to serve the whims of its user? If we were created for a purpose, whether that purpose is to save a civilization, or end a universe, or for pure amusement, then what can we do other than serve that purpose?

But in my opinion? I would say the true meaning of life is knowledge.

You see, all of this speculation hinges on a key fact: we don't know what the answer is. If we did, we wouldn't be talking about this at all. And not just us - everyone, really. This is one of the most fundamental questions to the human race, and nobody knows the true answer. So instead of speculating, and guessing, and weighing the options, why not try to find out? Not just about this, but about everything.

The old phrase was wrong, actually - knowledge is not power. What it is is potential. If you have knowledge, and you never share it, it dies along with you. It's useless. But once you expose it to the world, it can be used. And the products of that knowledge, that's where the rue power comes from. The power to communicate almost instantly over vast distances. The power to scan other stars for signs of life. The power to capture and harness the sun, the wind, the oceans, the core of the planet itself to do what we will with. In essence, the power to make our imaginations and dreams real.

Even if it isn't the true meaning of life, I'd say it's a pretty good side project.

Well, what really is the point?
To see whatever is coming I guess. It's not like I am aware of what will be there, so this anticipation is enthralling.

Yet at the same time, I cannot help but wonder what would occur should there be error.

Multiverse is vague, but in the infinite details of infinite universes how can any choice matter when the opposite choice is also being made regardless, or for that matter if you even have the ability to choose to begin with. Being born a conqueror, a slave, the same, or even the opposite becomes less than meaningless, it becomes a path chosen for you in life by something as seemingly inconsequential as a butterfly flapping its wings.

Maybe so. But I think I addressed something similar to that in my "Or, it could just be random chance" paragraph. And my personal viewpoint at the end still stands as well.

choose a goal. work towards it. there. done. life has meaning.
goals don't have to have an end point. if you think really big-picture, our goal as humans is simply the survival of our species. that doesn't have a set end (I hope).
honestly what you're saying about our similarity to machines is completely correct. I'm not sure this is the right thing to do, but I just chose to accept that and move on. Your life can only carry meaning if you decide to give it meaning.

>meaning
lolol
meaning is what you make it

Perspective is difficult. I know that what you said is true, but it doesn't bother me because unlike many things our body does, I'm unaware of it entirely. Things like happiness are just a chemical reaction, right? That doesn't make it any less meaningful to me. I enjoy good days, hate bad days, despite the fact that the process behind it is as trivial to me as being able to control my muscles without 'feeling' the command behind it.

My brain makes decisions unconsciously, sure. But my brain is just another part of me. It's strange to separate it from yourself. I don't get worked up over this anymore than I do not being able to control my metabolism. It's just the nature of things, and I can accept that.

As far as meaning? I have goals I want to see through, I have people I love, hobbies to tend to, and a dog to look after. People may sneer at how simple that is, but I'm okay with it. If I ever want anything more significant in my life, I just go for it. This keeps me moving along though it doesn't mean I'm always happy, it gives me a reason to get out of bed and go through the day.

There's a lot of things I just don't worry too much about, this is one of them. I'm not saying 'ignorance is bliss', but I try not to carry too much around with me. It gets in the way.