The philosophers of ancient Greece and China imagined a universe running on principles of harmony and order. But chance also played a part in their thinking. Some Greek philosophers linked chance atomic motion to free will. In Athens, allotment machines were used to guarantee a truly random selection of jurors and other officials. Early Chinese philosophers used the Book of Changes (Yi Jing) to try to access these principles, but they also linked chance to the ability of a sage to take timely action. How did they balance the idea of a world of order with uncertainties of chance, fate and fortune? Prof. Lisa Raphals, University of California Riverside and University of Edinburgh, looks at how chance worked in the life and thought of two of the great cultures of history.