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TheNightFly
Correct me if I'm wrong but, a lot of people seem to be running with the idea that chance is an actual characteristic of the universe. To me, chance just refers to statistical interpolation. In other words, the universe is completely deterministic but, we can't follow every minuscule chain if event so, we can't predict the future with absolute precision. For example we can't follow the cause and effect that leads to the emission of an alpha particle from an atomic nuclei so, the best we can do is use some statistical math to make an educated guess. This doesn't mean that the actual event is governed by chance or probability but, that's exactly what a lot of theory seems to suggest.
Ron
Hi Night Fly,
I agree with your interpretation but I will argue semantics with you. Chance is (from dictionary.com)"the absence of any cause of events that can be predicted, understood, or controlled" as opposed to probability "the relative possibility that an event will occur, as expressed by the ratio of the number of actual occurrences to the total number of possible occurrences."
So, to me, the uncertainty principle (along with your very good half-life analogy) falls in line with probability rather than chance.
Take care,
Ron
Zephir
QUOTE (TheNightFly+Sep 20 2006, 04:47 PM)
the idea that chance is an actual characteristic of the universe

The AWT supposes, the source of time is diffusion in concentration gradient of Aether fluctuations. The less random such fluctuations are, the more time is required for leveling of fkuctuations, the more dense is the space. The most dense space contains all the fluctuations in one harmonic wave. By such a way, the probability of events determines the intensity in which we perceive the reality.

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