indeterministic
Lacking fixed outcomes
Indeterministic describes systems or processes whose outcomes cannot be precisely predicted from their initial conditions.
In philosophy, indeterministic theories hold that not all events are causally determined—some contain genuine randomness or free choice.
In computing, an indeterministic algorithm may produce different outputs from identical inputs: Quantum mechanics is fundamentally indeterministic.
Randomly determined, statistically describable
- probabilityQuantified chance of occurrence
- chanceLikelihood of occurrence
- aleatoryGoverned by chance
- contingencyUncertain possible event
entropy · noise · Monte Carlo · random walk · dice · lottery · sampling · variation
Autonomous choice capacity
- libertarianismMinimal-government political philosophy
- agencyPower to act
- volitionCapacity for choice
- causationProduction of effects
metaphysics · existentialism · Epicurus · moral responsibility · deliberation · choice · autonomy · fatalism
Small inputs, disproportionate results
- sensitivityResponsiveness to stimuli
- nonlinearityDisproportionate cause and effect
- strange attractorsChaotic system's recurring pattern
- bifurcationDivision into two branches
turbulence · perturbation · fractals · emergence · self-organization · feedback loops · complex systems · initial conditions
Coexisting in multiple states
- wavefunctionQuantum state's mathematical representation
- measurementDetermining size or amount
- collapseSudden structural failure
- HeisenbergGerman quantum theorist
uncertainty principle · entanglement · nonlocality · observables · complementarity · tunneling · probabilistic · Copenhagen interpretation
Having multiple possible outcomes
- Turing machineMathematical model of computation
- NPShorthand dismissing thanks
- algorithmFinite problem-solving procedure
- concurrentHappening at once
parallel processing · race condition · asynchronous · multithreading · state machine · automata · heuristic
stochastic
Randomly determined, statistically describable
- probabilityQuantified chance of occurrence
- chanceLikelihood of occurrence
- aleatoryGoverned by chance
contingency · entropy · noise · Monte Carlo · random walk · dice · lottery · sampling · variation · fluctuation
free will
Autonomous choice capacity
- libertarianismMinimal-government political philosophy
- agencyPower to act
- volitionCapacity for choice
causation · metaphysics · existentialism · Epicurus · moral responsibility · deliberation · choice · autonomy · fatalism · necessity
butterfly effect
Small inputs, disproportionate results
- sensitivityResponsiveness to stimuli
- nonlinearityDisproportionate cause and effect
- strange attractorsChaotic system's recurring pattern
bifurcation · turbulence · perturbation · fractals · emergence · self-organization · feedback loops · complex systems · initial conditions · unpredictability
superposition
Coexisting in multiple states
- wavefunctionQuantum state's mathematical representation
- measurementDetermining size or amount
- collapseSudden structural failure
Heisenberg · uncertainty principle · entanglement · nonlocality · observables · complementarity · tunneling · probabilistic · Copenhagen interpretation · hidden variables
nondeterministic
Having multiple possible outcomes
- Turing machineMathematical model of computation
- NPShorthand dismissing thanks
- algorithmFinite problem-solving procedure
concurrent · parallel processing · race condition · asynchronous · multithreading · state machine · automata · heuristic
indeterministicdeterministic
Completely caused by prior conditions
determined · predetermined · necessitated · mechanistic · preordained
indeterministicdeterministic
Completely caused by prior conditions
predictable · clockwork · Newtonian · calculable · computable
indeterministicfatalistic
Believing events are inevitable
fated · foreordained · destined · fatalist · predestined