Poll: You guys believe in luck?
- Thread starter Halla Burrica
- Start date
Well the circumstances and events in someone's life can be called good or bad luck but I do not really believe in it outside that
There is no luck as a mystical force.
But there is luck as a statistical "force". Someone posted the law of large numbers to disprove luck, but I would say he just proved luck. Unless you're the statistical average, you're either unlucky or lucky.
Being born in a country that's on the verge of a civil war. Would you call me lucky or unlucky? Am I in the same position as someone born in the US, Germany, France...?
Being born sick and needing 5 operations during my first 6 years of life. Lucky or unlucky? Am I in the same position as someone born healthy and not having any health issues for the biggest part of their life?
Being born gay in a country, in a part of the world where gay people aren't accepted at all and where being openly gay can fuck your life up completely? Lucky? Neutral? The same position as a straight guy?
Basically luck exists, not as a mythical force. Just luck. Things that go in your favor happened more often than neutral things or things that work against you. You're lucky. Obviously you're unlucky if bad things happen more than good things. Unrelated to your activities.
But there is luck as a statistical "force". Someone posted the law of large numbers to disprove luck, but I would say he just proved luck. Unless you're the statistical average, you're either unlucky or lucky.
Being born in a country that's on the verge of a civil war. Would you call me lucky or unlucky? Am I in the same position as someone born in the US, Germany, France...?
Being born sick and needing 5 operations during my first 6 years of life. Lucky or unlucky? Am I in the same position as someone born healthy and not having any health issues for the biggest part of their life?
Being born gay in a country, in a part of the world where gay people aren't accepted at all and where being openly gay can fuck your life up completely? Lucky? Neutral? The same position as a straight guy?
Basically luck exists, not as a mythical force. Just luck. Things that go in your favor happened more often than neutral things or things that work against you. You're lucky. Obviously you're unlucky if bad things happen more than good things. Unrelated to your activities.
Do I think that "Luck" is a cosmic force in the universe that one can measure and quantify? Or some sort of mystical force affecting the outcome of my actions?
No.
Do I think "Luck" is a thing all the same?
Yes.
Now, that may be confusing. "Salty, how can Luck not exist and still exist?" I hear you typing into your keyboard at this very moment. (Yes, I can hear you typing. Don't make it weird.)
Well, I don't think Luck is a thing that one has a quantity of or anything like that. Merely, sometimes something happens through no fault or virtue of your own. Rolling a dice is about a random as you can get, but sometimes you "get lucky" with a roll. And other times, you have no luck with a roll and constantly get 1's practically giving you no progress (think board games).
Anyone who has every played a TCG is aware of a certain level of "luck" in the game. Yes, there are things that factor into TCGs. How well you build your deck, your understanding of the rules, knowing how to play your cards for maximum effect, and such. But the "Luck of the Draw" and even how your cards play against your opponents (presumably) random cards are also factors. I've won games because of a single "lucky" draw. And lost games because I couldn't get the cards I needed, or play the ones I had, due to bad "luck". Luck is less a thing and more about playing the odds in this context, though, but luck is a simpler concept.
Other than that, I'm sure we've all avoided injury due to sheer luck. Or were "lucky" to find a rare movie or game at a store. Or just had "bad luck" that your car broke down at this moment that you really needed it.
That's my thoughts on "luck" at least.
No.
Do I think "Luck" is a thing all the same?
Yes.
Now, that may be confusing. "Salty, how can Luck not exist and still exist?" I hear you typing into your keyboard at this very moment. (Yes, I can hear you typing. Don't make it weird.)
Well, I don't think Luck is a thing that one has a quantity of or anything like that. Merely, sometimes something happens through no fault or virtue of your own. Rolling a dice is about a random as you can get, but sometimes you "get lucky" with a roll. And other times, you have no luck with a roll and constantly get 1's practically giving you no progress (think board games).
Anyone who has every played a TCG is aware of a certain level of "luck" in the game. Yes, there are things that factor into TCGs. How well you build your deck, your understanding of the rules, knowing how to play your cards for maximum effect, and such. But the "Luck of the Draw" and even how your cards play against your opponents (presumably) random cards are also factors. I've won games because of a single "lucky" draw. And lost games because I couldn't get the cards I needed, or play the ones I had, due to bad "luck". Luck is less a thing and more about playing the odds in this context, though, but luck is a simpler concept.
Other than that, I'm sure we've all avoided injury due to sheer luck. Or were "lucky" to find a rare movie or game at a store. Or just had "bad luck" that your car broke down at this moment that you really needed it.
That's my thoughts on "luck" at least.
I'm a poker player. For money. Have been since I was 16. I can't afford to believe in luck. Everything, absolutely everything in the universe is a result of probability. If something can happen then it will, given a large enough sample size and time. Time is the great equalizer.
There's no such thing as a lucky card coming up, it's just that 1 time out of whatever number of cards are left in the deck that card was on top. 1 out of X. The rest of the time, X-1 times, it will come up a totally different card that doesn't help you. You're job then is to determine if you'll get paid enough the one time you win to make up for all the times you lose. If the answer is yes then you proceed, if it's no then you fold the hand.
There's no lucky dice roll, all sides come up a statistically even number of times. You didn't get lucky. You either beat the odds or the odds but you but on a long enough time scale it all shakes out.
There's no such thing as a lucky card coming up, it's just that 1 time out of whatever number of cards are left in the deck that card was on top. 1 out of X. The rest of the time, X-1 times, it will come up a totally different card that doesn't help you. You're job then is to determine if you'll get paid enough the one time you win to make up for all the times you lose. If the answer is yes then you proceed, if it's no then you fold the hand.
There's no lucky dice roll, all sides come up a statistically even number of times. You didn't get lucky. You either beat the odds or the odds but you but on a long enough time scale it all shakes out.
I don't believe in luck, but I believe that belief in luck affects outcomes in ways that could be mistaken as luck.
Luck is just Chaos Theory.
Past events + timing = outcome.
Take getting a certain card in game of cards.
Cards already in play + number of cards remaining in deck + card order from previous game + times deck shuffled + your dealing position in game = outcome of which cards you get.
Of course to most it seems completely random (aka luck), but it can be theoretically calculated if you could account for all past events that have an effect.
Past events + timing = outcome.
Take getting a certain card in game of cards.
Cards already in play + number of cards remaining in deck + card order from previous game + times deck shuffled + your dealing position in game = outcome of which cards you get.
Of course to most it seems completely random (aka luck), but it can be theoretically calculated if you could account for all past events that have an effect.
I'm surprised with all the negative responses.
Usually when someone tells me there's no such thing as luck I think they're saying that everyone has complete control over their lives, situations and circumstances; Which I think is completely deluded.
Some billionare can win the lottery twice and a five year old can get a terminal illness, random favourable or unfavourable turns of chance, in other words good or bad luck.
Usually when someone tells me there's no such thing as luck I think they're saying that everyone has complete control over their lives, situations and circumstances; Which I think is completely deluded.
Some billionare can win the lottery twice and a five year old can get a terminal illness, random favourable or unfavourable turns of chance, in other words good or bad luck.
I don't think luck exists. Whether you think luck is divine or just things happening to you, it doesn't really matter.
It's also kind of detrimental to be "lucky", if you think about it, because you stop judging things on your own merit and instead have to relegate yourself to judging how "lucky" you are. Also I hate the word, it sounds like cereal but it's not and that makes me uncomfortable.
It's also kind of detrimental to be "lucky", if you think about it, because you stop judging things on your own merit and instead have to relegate yourself to judging how "lucky" you are. Also I hate the word, it sounds like cereal but it's not and that makes me uncomfortable.
I believe there are certain events that are unpredictable to us either from a lack of information or computational ability, and the outcome of these events is what we call "luck". If these events followed some sort of pattern wherein certain people had favorable outcomes more often than others they would be more predictable, and regardless of what's causing the pattern, there would be less "luck" involved in them.
Does that answer the question?
Does that answer the question?
