1) In his classic work on evolution, Chance and Necessity, Jacques Monod describes this natural process as consisting of a combination of chance mutations (contingency), which are blind but free, and necessity, which knows what it is doing but can do no other.
If that is a basis for modellin the mind or the world, I would think that comp should also contain these two elements: Platonia= necessity and lawful Contingia= probabilistic but blind. But to my knowledge, although there are very good algorithms for simulating randomness, there is no such thing as a means of generating pure randomness with a computer program. However, if appearances will do, a computer can emulate reality, if reality follows Monad's model. 2) Some have asked if Platonia can also rule the contingent. I don't know if Monod gets into this issue in his book, but probability theory says that, in the large, chance must follow certain laws or rules, so that in the large, chance is not entirely blind. To my mind, Leibniz however did express a similar idea i his book The Principles of Nature and Grace, wherein in perception, we see the many in the one. This indicates that Platonia is capable of guiding the many contingent operations of this world (chance) in the large, in terms of certain laws (necessity). If I may add a theodical observation, this also appears to be the way God acts in this world, in terms of the many, which one might call Providence, instead of the one (me personally). He would order the Isreaelites to kill an entire family. men women and children. Or in the Flood, kill everybody in the world except Noah and his family. And he let the rain fall on the good as well as the evil. [Roger Clough], [[email protected]] 11/19/2012 "Forever is a long time, especially near the end." -Woody Allen -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list?hl=en.
