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to reality and its role in contemporary world. Referring to the work of
Simone Weil, Agamben analyses the ability (or lack thereof) of the new
laws to offer an accurate and deterministic picture of reality. More im-
portantly, with the help of Cardano and Pascal, Agamben looks at the
nature and origins of probability in order to unravel the pragmatic as-
pects of the relationship between physics and reality. Agamben ex-
plains that, by calculating the probability of different scenarios, the
sphere of probability and its possible outcomes are superimposed onto
reality. In doing so, he raises questions about the ontology of proba-
bility and the legitimacy of representing it as something real. These
questions become more pressing when Agamben explains that the aim
of statistics is not that of knowing reality, but that of helping in taking
decisions in conditions of uncertainty. Even if the calculation of the
probability of an event occurring never affects or determines the real
outcome of that event, it has nonetheless the ability to influence reality
by means of our acting in consideration of it. «Modern science – and
with it, every single man – bases its or his decisions according to cri-
teria that cannot consider the specific case in question, but rather only
a “probable case,” which coincides with the specific case only “casu-
ally”». (pp. 40-41). Finally, what is said in this short book is as impor-
tant as what is implied. Thus, for example, the examination of con-
temporary science and the subsequent role of scientists in shaping re-
ality hint at possible intrinsic connections with the atomic bomb, as
well as with the role of science during and after World War II.

Michela Bariselli

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