Philosophy for Kids / Philosophy's Not Boring: The Kids Philosophy Podcast
A groundbreaking podcast for curious kids aged 4-12, and the grown-ups listening with them, that proves philosophy, psychology and religion are anything but dull.
Join our fictional AI hosts Mira, a brilliant 9-year-old, and her younger brother Finn, age 7, as they explore philosophy, psychology and religion as one big family of questions about how we make sense of things. Each episode takes a real thinker or idea seriously, from what makes you the same person you were as a baby to why people across the world believe such different things about the soul, and then lands it somewhere in your actual life.
We don't hand you the answer and move on. Some questions have one; some have several worth comparing; some nobody has ever settled, and we'll tell you which is which. On matters of faith we stay even-handed: we describe what people believe from the outside, and never tell you what to believe yourself. Because philosophy isn't a pile of hard words to memorize. It's learning to ask a better question, and to sit with it honestly, even when it's uncomfortable.
A note on why we use AI. For us, AI allows us to deliver learning at a scale and quality that previously would have been too expensive. If we make the odd technical error, or the sound goes a bit funny, bear with us, we're trying our best. We hope you enjoy the show!
Philosophy for Kids / Philosophy's Not Boring: The Kids Philosophy Podcast
What is luck?
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Welcome to Philosophy is not boring by Kadopoly.com. I'm Mira. And I'm Finn. Before we dive into today's massive topic, we need to send a huge warm hello to Liam, who is 10 years old, and Lucas, who is seven, listening to us all the way in Singapore.
SPEAKER_01Hi Liam, hi Lucas, thank you so much for listening. And guys, you actually sent us the big question for today's episode.
SPEAKER_00You asked us, what really is luck? It is such a brilliant, tricky question, and this entire episode is dedicated to you both.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, because luck feels so real, doesn't it? Like when you are playing a really intense board game and you desperately need a double six to win. You shake the dice, you close your eyes, you throw them, and bam, two sixes!
SPEAKER_00It feels like pure magic, like the universe knew exactly what you wanted. But is it actually magic? Today we are figuring out if luck is just a feeling, a proven scientific fact, or something you can actually build yourself.
SPEAKER_01Wait, build my own luck! Like a superpower, like I can just craft a lucky day in my bedroom.
SPEAKER_00Haha, sort of. Let's get right into it and see how deep this rabbit hole goes. So, let's start with the dice. When you roll that double six, it feels like the universe is on your side. But what is it actually? Mathematicians call it probability. That is the mathematical science of how likely something is to happen, based entirely on numbers. And here is a mind-bending fact about probability. Dice have absolutely no memory.
SPEAKER_01What do you mean no memory? They're just little plastic cubes with dots on them. They obviously don't have brains or keep diaries.
SPEAKER_00Right, but human beings constantly act like they do. Have you ever been playing a game and rolled a bunch of ones and twos in a row?
SPEAKER_01Oh, definitely. And then I think my next roll has to be a good one, because my luck is absolutely due to change.
SPEAKER_00Exactly. But the dice do not remember your last roll. They don't feel bad for you. Every single time you pick up that dice and roll it, your chance of getting a six is exactly one in six. It is pure blind chance.
SPEAKER_01Aw man, so luck is just randomness. We have zero control over our lives. That sounds a little bit depressing, actually.
SPEAKER_00Well, hold on, that is just probability. But philosophers see it very differently. About 2,000 years ago, there was an incredible Roman philosopher named Seneca. Seneca. Did he play board games too? Probably, but he was chewing on this exact question of luck, living in a world where things were often totally unpredictable. He famously argued that luck is simply what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Wait, say that again? Preparation meets opportunity. Think of it like this. Imagine you were walking home and you find a secret treasure map blowing across the playground. That map is an opportunity. Ooh, I would absolutely love that. I'd be rich. But what if you had never bothered to learn how to read a map? Or what if you were too lazy to buy a shovel? You are not prepared. So the opportunity is useless to you.
SPEAKER_01Oh, I see. So if I actually practiced map reading, I am completely prepared. And if I randomly find the map, that is the opportunity. Then I find the buried treasure, and all my friends call me incredibly lucky. But really, I did half the work. Exactly.
SPEAKER_00You could not control the wind blowing the map to you, but you completely controlled being ready for it. Seneca believed you cannot control the random stuff the universe throws at you. But you can always, always be ready to catch the good things.
SPEAKER_01I don't know, Mira. That sounds really nice and wise for an ancient Roman guy in a toga, but can we actually prove that? It is really easy to just say, be prepared. But some people genuinely seem like they have a magical luck force field around them.
SPEAKER_00You are right to question that. We should always look for evidence. And that is exactly what a famous psychologist named Richard Wiseman wondered. In 1993, he decided to actually test the idea of luck scientifically.
SPEAKER_01You can test luck. How do you even do that? Do you put people in a laboratory with black cats, ladders, and broken mirrors?
SPEAKER_00Not quite. Wiseman found 400 real people for a massive psychological study. Half of these people considered themselves extremely lucky in life. The other half felt extremely unlucky, like a rain cloud was always following them.
SPEAKER_01Okay. So what did he do to test them? Did he make them guess lottery numbers?
SPEAKER_00No, he did something much simpler but incredibly clever. He gave each of them a thick newspaper and asked them to do one simple task. Count exactly how many photographs were printed inside the entire paper. Counting pictures? How does that test luck? Well, he played a massive trick. On the second page of the newspaper, taking up half the page, he put a gigantic message in huge letters. What did the message say? It said, Stop counting. There are 43 photographs in this newspaper. No way! Did the people see it? Here is the crazy part. The people who called themselves unlucky almost completely missed it. They took two whole minutes to count every single picture, completely ignoring the giant text.
SPEAKER_01Wait, they just stared right past the giant words?
SPEAKER_00How is that even possible? Because they were trying so hard to count perfectly. Wiseman found that unlucky people tend to be much more anxious, stressed, and narrowly focused. When you are super stressed about counting pictures, you only see what you expect to see.
SPEAKER_01And the lucky people, did they have supervision?
SPEAKER_00No, they just had a different mindset. The lucky people spotted the giant message in seconds. Wiseman showed that people who feel lucky are generally more relaxed, open, and observant. They stay open to what is actually right in front of them.
SPEAKER_01Okay, wait, hold on. This is where I have to push back. That makes total sense for a fun newspaper test. But that does not mean we control absolutely everything. Like, if I get a horrible stomach bug on my birthday and barf all over my own cake, ew, that is just purely bad luck. Being super relaxed and observant doesn't fix a stomach bug.
SPEAKER_00You are completely right, Finn. And that is where we have to be honest. We can test if being observant helps you spot a message. That is testable science. But we cannot test why somebody gets sick or why a dice lands on a two. We absolutely cannot steer the dice. But Wiseman and Seneca agree on one thing. We control how we respond to the dice. I think I get it.
SPEAKER_01The dice roll is totally random, but whether I notice the giant message on the paper is up to me. Exactly.
SPEAKER_00So next time you feel like you are having a completely unlucky day, like you desperately wanted to play outside, but it started pouring rain. Remember Seneca and Wiseman.
SPEAKER_01So instead of just being super mad at the rain and staring out the window all day, I should look around for a different opportunity.
SPEAKER_00Yes. Maybe the rain is your chance to build that epic indoor pillow fort you have been putting off. The luck in that situation is spotting the hidden chance to have a great day anyway, because your mind is open.
SPEAKER_01That is kind of amazing actually. So Liam and Lucas in Singapore, and all of us listening, we can kind of make our own luck just by paying closer attention to the world around us.
SPEAKER_00We really can. And here is a fun, mind-bending fact to wrap up. Humans have been arguing about this for literally 2,000 years, and our brains are still tricking us today. Tricking us how? Remember how we talked about wanting a double six and feeling like the dice owe you one? We actually have a scientific name for that. It is called the Gambler's Fallacy. Our human brains are so wired to look for patterns that we try to find them even when things are completely random.
SPEAKER_01My brain is definitely wired to want a double six. So the next time I play a board game, I'm going to remember that the dice don't care about me, but I can still be ready for whatever they roll.
SPEAKER_00Alright, Finn, time for the quiz! Are you ready? Okay, I'm ready. First question. What do mathematicians call it when we roll a dice and look at how likely a number is to come up? Next one. Which Roman philosopher said luck is when preparation meets opportunity? Question three. In 1993, how many people did psychologist Richard Wiseman study? Here's number four. What did the lucky people spot in the newspaper experiment? Last question. Did dice have a memory of what they just rolled? Great job! Let's see how you did. The first answer is, mathematicians call it probability. For question two, that was the Roman philosopher Seneca. The answer to number three is he studied 400 people. For question four, they spotted a giant message that said stop counting, while the unlucky people missed it completely. And the final answer is, no, dice have absolutely no memory. Every role is pure chance.
SPEAKER_01You know, I feel way better knowing that luck isn't just this magical thing that ignores me.
SPEAKER_00Me too. It is really nice to know we can keep our eyes open and spot the good things waiting for us.
SPEAKER_01If you loved wondering about luck with us, we'd love it if you could leave us a five-star review.
SPEAKER_00Yes, just scroll down on whatever app you're using and tap those five stars. It really helps us keep exploring big questions.
SPEAKER_01Oh, and don't forget to head over to our site kidopoly.com. We've got tons of fun learning games and cool activities there to explore.
SPEAKER_00And if you want your name on the show like Liam and Lucas, or just want to send us some feedback, email us at hello at kidopoly.com.
SPEAKER_01See you next time on Philosophy is not boring.
SPEAKER_00Bye everyone.