Do you believe in fate?
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Do you believe in fate?
| Sat, 08-20-2005 - 1:07pm |
Do you think that things will always happen the way they are supposed to, no matter what you do?
| Sat, 08-20-2005 - 1:07pm |
Do you think that things will always happen the way they are supposed to, no matter what you do?
I guess I believe in kind of a combination. Those things that are within my control, I can affect the outcome by my actions or lack thereof. But those things that are not within my control, I can't affect the outcome.
For example, if I want a particular job, I can apply and put my best foot forward during the application and interview process. But once I've done everything I can, the outcome is out of my control, and what will be, will be.
Sheri
I am a proponent of Chaos theory and the "Butterfly Effect".
Read this if you are bored:
Chaos Theory
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Chaos theory is an exciting new branch of mathematics concerned with identifying regularities in phenomena that on the surface appear unpredictable and random. Although the theory is new the idea is not, mankind has strived to understand the complexities of the universe since the earliest civilisations. For years scientists and mathematicians have been working to try and bring order out of chaos in an attempt to try and predict random events. One of the earliest breakthroughs in this field was, the introduction of a sophisticated calendar to predict the seasons, another was the use of astronomical rules to predict eclipses.
Chaos theory is the scientific theory concerned with situations that obey particular laws but appear to have little or no order; it attempts to explain the fact that complex and unpredictable results will occur in systems that are sensitive to their initial conditions. A common example for chaos theory is the butterfly effect. In theory a butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon is affecting the weather conditions in Chicago. This basically means that the butterfly's wings flapping is considered the infinitesimal change in initial conditions that causes a random occurrence to the weather in Chicago.
Any situation is said to be random if its outcome is seen to be totally unpredictable or contains a certain degree of uncertainty. The theory of probability is essential in the modelling and analysis of these random situations, to try and predict outcomes under certain initial conditions. There are some aspects of life however that we expect and in many situations hope that the behaviour exhibited is predictable or acts in a deterministic manner. It has been said that in recent times the distinction between random and deterministic has become less certain.
The weather system is a prime example of a random system. Weather patterns seem to be very unpredictable; it is hard to predict what the weather is going to be like on daily bases let alone over a long time period. However, over the years mathematical models have been set up that have enabled the weather patterns to be predicted but not to a particularly high degree of accuracy. These have been set up using knowledge on old weather patterns and by understanding how different types of weather come about. Short-term forecasts are often quite similar to the actual outcome yet they are not always entirely right. Long-term forecasts are often quite different to the actual weather patterns exhibited. This difference between prediction and outcome is due to minor disturbances within the weather system that cannot always be predicted even by mathematical models. Each disturbance in the weather system minute as it seems will cause a change that will increase geometrically over time such that in the future the weather will be totally unpredictable and unexpected.
Such systems that show this random behaviour are said to display what is known as chaos. Chaotic systems display extreme sensitivity to small changes in the initial conditions. Chaos will arise in situations where two arbitrary close starting points diverge exponentially so that their future behaviour is eventually unpredictable.
I kind of see it that way, too.
In other words, no one can really predict the future, but they're sure trying.
I certainly wouldn't think someone could come up with a formula to predict what I'm going to do a week from now, or a month from now.
It's like that movie, "Sliding Doors". About how one single unimportant event (like missing a train) can change everything in your life. It's so freaky sometimes how things fall into place, and you can see how they are related, and how any tiny detail could have changed everything.
It does scare me, though - it often feels like I have no control over my life. Like it's all been decided for me. I hate that.
>In other words, no one can really predict
>the future, but they're sure trying.
True. I suppose anything we do is considered the infinitesimal change in initial conditions that alter the original prediction. Therefore it is possible to accurately predict the future....as long as you don't do anything different along the way!