Luck
Subtitle: The Brilliant Randomness Of Everyday Life
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press
Published: March 15, 2001
Language: eng
Format: Paperback
Number of pages: 256
ISBN-13: 9780822957553
Subjects: Philosophy; Probability & statistics; Free Will & Determinism; Philosophy / General; Reference
Description: In Luck, one of our most eminent philosophers offers a realistic view of the nature and operation of luck to help us come to sensible terms with life in a chaotic world. Differentiating luck from fate (inexorable destiny) and fortune (mere chance), Nicholas Rescher weaves a colorful tapestry of historical examples, from the use of lots in the Old and New Testaments to Thomas Gataker?s treatise of 1619 on the great English lottery of 1612, from casino gambling to playing the stock market. Because we are creatures of limited knowledge who do and must make decisions in the light of incomplete information, Rescher argues, we are inevitably at the mercy of luck. It behooves us to learn more about it.