The Die is Cast

“The Die is Cast” is the title of an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. A listener and his wife disagree about what kind of “die” is meant here. It’s not a reference to metallurgy– it’s a quotation attributed to Julius Caesar. When he crossed the Rubicon to lead a campaign against his enemies, he supposedly declared, “Alea jacta est.” The word alea, which refers to one piece of a set of dice, is an ancestor of the modern English word aleatory, which means “by chance.” This is part of a complete episode.

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