Randomness and pattern: Social and philosophical perspective

Abstract

The modern picture of the universe is almost completely described by a number of fundamental scientific theories. However, despite the presence of patterns that perfectly explain almost all the observed natural phenomena, the manifestation of random deviations remains a big problem. If, prior to the beginning of the twentieth century, each new theory relied on a solid experimental and factual foundation, today, probability has become an integral element, having a genuinely philosophical implication, for science. This article attempts to uncover the relationship between the accidental and the natural in terms of the natural course of development of philosophical ideas about necessity and chance.