This text is divided into two major parts.  The aim of the first partis to convince the reader that the random world begins directly in hisor her own living room because, in fact, all modern life is based onprobability.  The first part is on the concept of probability andconsiders making decisions in conflict situations, optimizing queues,games, and the control of various processes, and doing randomsearches.The second part of this text shows how fundamental chance is in natureusing the probabilistic laws of modern physics and biology asexamples. Elements of quantum mechanics are also involved, and thisallows the author to demonstrate how probabilistic laws are basic tomicroscopic phenomena. The idea is that the reader, passing from thefirst part of the book to the second one, would see that probabilityis not only around us but is at the basis of everything.The Russian edition ran into 230,000 copies and is sold out. The book was translated from the Russian by Michael Burov and wasfirst published by Mir Publishers in 1988.