The aim of science is to reduce the scope of chance. - Ivars Peterson

In mathematics, in science, and in life, we constantly face the delicate, tricky task of separating design from happenstance.

The theory of probability combines commonsense reasoning with calculation. It domesticates luck, making it subservient to reason.

As the mathematician Clifford Taubes noted, “Physics is the study of the world, while mathematics is the study of all possible worlds.” Thus, mathematics unveils the infinite possibilities; physics pinpoints the few that structure our universe and our existence.