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As particle performs random walk in high-dimensional space, an observer may dis cover subspace in which the projection of its path approximates straight line. The observer may then be tempted to anthropomorphize the particle, and to believe that it has a system which person forms for the conduct of life.1 In an inversion of roles, scientist or humanist who is asked to expound his life philosophy must feel inclined to identity with that particle if he is aware of the many chance events that shaped his career, and of the inchoate system that he formed for its conduct as it began. That very beginning I owe to high school teacher who gave me my first glimpse of the austere beauty of mathematics and my first mathematical experiences. For several years, Jules Dermie challenged the ingenuity of my class with the geometric puzzles that were then at the core of the French curriculum. A seductive subject presented by dedicated master at critical time in my intellectual development pointed me, unaware, toward career of scientific research. Chance intervened
Gérard Debreu (Tue,) studied this question.