A Series of Fortunate Events
eBook - ePub

A Series of Fortunate Events

Chance and the Making of the Planet, Life, and You

  1. English
  2. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

A Series of Fortunate Events

Chance and the Making of the Planet, Life, and You

About this book

"Fascinating and exhilarating—Sean B. Carroll at his very best."—Bill Bryson, author of The Body: A Guide for Occupants

From acclaimed writer and biologist Sean B. Carroll, a rollicking, awe-inspiring story of the surprising power of chance in our lives and the world

Why is the world the way it is? How did we get here? Does everything happen for a reason or are some things left to chance? Philosophers and theologians have pondered these questions for millennia, but startling scientific discoveries over the past half century are revealing that we live in a world driven by chance. A Series of Fortunate Events tells the story of the awesome power of chance and how it is the surprising source of all the beauty and diversity in the living world.

Like every other species, we humans are here by accident. But it is shocking just how many things—any of which might never have occurred—had to happen in certain ways for any of us to exist. From an extremely improbable asteroid impact, to the wild gyrations of the Ice Age, to invisible accidents in our parents' gonads, we are all here through an astonishing series of fortunate events. And chance continues to reign every day over the razor-thin line between our life and death.

This is a relatively small book about a really big idea. It is also a spirited tale. Drawing inspiration from Monty Python, Kurt Vonnegut, and other great thinkers, and crafted by one of today's most accomplished science storytellers, A Series of Fortunate Events is an irresistibly entertaining and thought-provoking account of one of the most important but least appreciated facts of life.

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Yes, you can access A Series of Fortunate Events by Sean B. Carroll in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Biological Sciences & Biology. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

NOTES

All persons, living: Vonnegut (1998), p. xi.

INTRODUCTION

The crowd whooped: “Tiger Woods’ First Ace in 1996.” PGA TOUR. Video. www.pgatour.com/video/2014/01/21/tiger_s-first-ace.html
Comrade General Kim: Gallo, DJ. “Kim Jong-Il Was a Dictator Who Went To Great Links.” ESPN. 19 Dec 2011. www.espn.com/espn/page2/index/_/id/7369649; Girard, Daniel. “Kim Jong-Il Once Carded 38-under Par at Pyongyang Golf Course.” The Star. 19 Dec 2011. Toronto Star Newspapers Ltd. www.thestar.com/sports/golf/2011/12/19/kim_jongil_once_carded_38under_par_at_pyongyang_golf_course.html.
There are only two: Read more about the real story here—Sens, Josh. “Behind Kim Jong Il’s Famous Round of Golf.” GOLF.com. 1 June 2016. EB Golf Media LLC. www.golf.com/golf--plus/behind-kim-jong-ils-famous-round-golf
However, the odds: “Hole In One Odds: Golf’s Rare Feat.” US Hole In One. 22 July 2008. www.holeinoneinsurance.com/news/2008/07/hole-in-one-odds-golfs-rare-feat.html
What makes Jong-Il’s: “Pyongyang Golf Course Scorecard & Course Layout.” Asian Senior Masters. 1 Oct 2005. Asian Seniors Tour. www.asianseniormasters.com/newsdetails1.asp?NewsID=1076
And what’s the chance: “Kim Jong Il: 10 Weird Facts, Propaganda.” CBS News. 19 Dec 2011. CBS Interactive. www.cbsnews.com/media/kim-jong-il-10-weird-facts-propaganda/5/
We flock to casinos: Prince, Todd. “Number of Young, First-Time Visitors to Las Vegas on the Rise.” Las Vegas Review-Journal. 5 Apr 2017. www.reviewjournal.com/business/tourism/number-of-young-first-time-visitors-to-las-vegas-on-the-rise/
That’s how the casinos: Katsilometes, John. “Reports: Britney Spears to Make $500K Per Show in Las Vegas.” 2 July 2018. Las Vegas Review-Journal. www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/entertainment-columns/kats/reports-britney-spears-to-make-500k-per-show-in-las-vegas/
The Casino made: Huff and Geis (1959), p. 28–29.
Finally, after almost: Arie, Sophie. “No 53 Puts Italy Out of its Lottery Agony.” The Guardian. 10 Feb 2005. Guardian News and Media Limited. www.theguardian.com/world/2005/feb/11/italy.sophiearie.
I say “close”: Grech (2002). There is also some evidence that parents with all boys have a slight tendency to produce another boy, not to break the streak: Rodgers and Daughty (2001).
They have also found: Croson and Sundali (2005); Clark et al. (2009).
“I think she just”: Bleier, Evan. “California Man Wins $650K in Lottery Day After Wife Dies from Heart Attack.” United Press International. 31 March 2014. www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/03/31/California-man-wins-650K-in-lottery-day-after-wife-dies-from-heart-attack/4731396267665/
“everything happens”: “Winner Stories: Timothy McDaniel.” calottery. California ...

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. More Praise for A Series of Fortunate Events
  3. Also by Sean B. Carroll
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Epigraph
  8. Contents
  9. Introduction: The Trouble with Chance
  10. I: Stuff Happens
  11. II: A World of Mistakes
  12. III: 23 and You
  13. Afterword: A Conversation about Chance
  14. Acknowledgments
  15. Notes
  16. Bibliography and Further Reading
  17. Index
  18. Discussion Questions