Does Chance Have a History?
From ancient knucklebones to modern algorithms, discover how humanity has always sought to dialogue with destiny.
🦴 Before Dice: The Knucklebone
Long before our 6-sided plastic dice, our ancestors used knucklebones (small bones from the heel of sheep or goats).
Thrown like dice, they had 4 distinct faces. In ancient Greece, each face had a value. The luckiest throw was called the "Venus Throw" (all faces different), while the worst was the "Dog Throw".
Did you know? The oldest known cubic dice were discovered in Iran and date back over 5000 years!
🏛️ When Chance was a God
Today, we talk about "probabilities". But for millennia, chance was the voice of the Gods.
- Tyche (Greece): Goddess of fortune and prosperity of a city.
- Fortuna (Rome): Often depicted with a Wheel (well, well! 🎡), symbolizing that luck turns.
Drawing lots wasn't a game, it was a serious way to know the divine will for electing magistrates or sharing lands.
🪙 Navia aut Caput!
This is the Roman ancestor of Heads or Tails. It meant "Ship or Head".
Roman coins often had the Emperor's head (Head) on one side and the prow of a galley (Ship) on the other. It was already the world's fastest way to settle a binary dispute.
Julius Caesar himself allegedly used chance to make certain risky military decisions.
🧠 Why do we love chance?
Letting Go
Making a decision consumes mental energy (the famous "decision fatigue"). Relying on chance is giving yourself a mental break.
Total Fairness
The wheel or the dice have no prejudices. They are impartial. That's why we use them to decide "who does the dishes"!
Want to Test Your Destiny?
Now that you know the history, let AmStramGram write your immediate future (or just pick tonight's restaurant).