[Sam Cree]

We might be talking semantics. To me "random" is anything that is unplanned. So my usage of the word "random" could include events that are extremely specific and which follow strict guidelines and physical laws, as long as they happen without purposeful planning and direction.

Just because an event happened randomly doesn't mean it couldn't be reproduced arbitrarily later? Or that it would result in specific consequences, some of which would be predictable.

I see that this line of thought leads to an entirely different philosophical can of worms than the one under discussion, if taken much further.

[Ophiucus]

We might be talking semantics.

I agree.

I see that this line of thought leads to an entirely different philosophical can of worms than the one under discussion, if taken much further.

Very true - that could overwhelm its own thread. :-)

[Junior]

To me "random" is anything that is unplanned.

"Random" and "un-planned" are two different concepts. An avalanche may be unplanned, but it is definitely not random -- the debris heads in pretty much the same direction. Throwing a die generates a random number, but the act of throwing it makes it "planned."

[RightWhale]

In chemistry, random means that any sample from the mixture or solution would have the same composition. If the mixture is not well-mixed, or if the sample is too small, the concentration of the components would possibly differ from one sample to the next more than the experimental error would predict. In the sense that strict procedures are followed, random sampling would produce the same results every time.

Thus, sampling by Leftist polling agencies would not normally meet strict scientific requirements since they would not follow strict procedures.

[b_sharp]

The most useful definition that I have run across is:

An inability to predict future outcomes based on previous results.