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Content: for such an intellect nothing would be
		      uncertain and the future just like the past would be present before its eyes.5
Laplace's rigid
			  determinism was already untenable by the early twentieth century because the
			  second law of thermodynamics showed that there was a genuine openness or
			  unpredictability about the future. Not all events were time-reversible. Then
			  quantum physics found contingency in the heart of the material world. The
			  behavior of individual sub-atomic particles can never be predicted with perfect
			  accuracy. You cannot tell, for example, when a particular atom of Uranium will
			  undergo radioactive decay. This is not just a matter of experimental
			  practicalities but an intrinsic quality of matter and energy. Reality is fuzzy
			  at small scales. You can never bring it into perfect focus. But contingency is
			  not just present at small scales. I have already mentioned Alvarez' asteroid
			  impact.