The odds for a humanbeing living right now would be so impossibly high, and yet here we are.

Does that mean that we are really lucky to be here right now and we are really living in the present and that we are the future? — Persain

The value of saying this is only poetic or sentimental. It's very common to say this. But it's not a philosophical view. Logic itself doesn't approve of it because think about it -- lucky as compared to what? To that non-place, the time before you were born? Then you can't compare two disparate situations and give it a judgment of "lucky".

What are the chances of all the people living right now to be here right now? — Persain

This kind of romantic declaration could be said by people (and has been) at any point in human history, so it's a fairly fruitless observation when you reflect on it. The usual framing of this kind of argument is more personal - what are the chances of you being born at all (regardless of the times you find yourself in) given any sperm which gets to fertilize an egg is in competition with 100 million others? My answer: So what? Humans project significance on all things as part of our insatiable urge to make meaning and find personal connection in events and 'reality'.

maybe is the reason that we are always living in the present. — Persain

Yes. As I like to think of it, it is never not now.

I'm sure your descriptions match the inspiration of pantheists throughout time. Somehow, being born to awareness in any now links you to awareness in all nows.

Suppose a lottery out of ten billion atoms in some universe, where there will only be one winner selected at random.

The probability of any atom being selected is astronomically low.

But should we be surprised that an atom would be selected? Does the selection itself have an astronomically low probability?

No. The fact of any particular atom, a, b, c, being selected (∃x Selected(x) & x=a) is very low, but just that very fact of an atom being selected, is in fact not unlikely at all. If anything, it's a certain fact: some atom must be selected, even if we don't know which one! (∃x Selected(x)). The earlier proposition specifying the atom being selected is just about 0.000(...)1% or some other low probability, and we should not expect it to be true nor would we be rational in supposing it'd be true. But the latter proposition of an atom being selected is a distinct one, and a certainty, one that we're rationally obliged to believe.

Similarly, the fact that people exist at the present, out of infinitely many arbitrary "potential people", is no surprising fact. It's an almost-certainty given that people in the past existed, and reproduced.

However, when it turns out that an atom gets selected, or a person is born, while this satisfies the truth of the general facts, any particular person must be a particular someone, in the same way any particular atom must be a particular atom. That fact should carry with itself no surprise. 'Tis but an illusion.

Like with a lottery, to win a lottery is almost impossible, you could play lottery all your life and never win something because the chances you will actually win is astronomically low. Isn't that also for the people living right now on earth in this present? The odds for a humanbeing living right now would be so impossibly high, and yet here we are. — Persain

The probability of dealing a royal straight flush in order in spades from a standard, well-shuffled deck of 52 playing cards is exactly the same as dealing a hand consisting of 3 of diamonds, 7 of spades, Jack of diamonds, 10 of clubs, and Ace of hearts in that order.

What are the chances of all the people living right now to be here right now? — Persain

Certain.

Any time you ask that question, exactly all the people alive then will be alive.

What are the chances of all the people living right now to be here right now? — Persain

The chances are 100 percent.

What you wanted to ask was "what are the chances that 100 years ago someone would have known all the people that are alive now?" If you asked that, then the chances would be very slim.

A lot of people (even philosophers) mix these concepts up. What are the chances of something happening that has happened, and what are the chances of someone knowing ahead of time that that event would happen.

Common mistake.

My personal ‘belief’ here is that we are all already dead (just like everyone else before and after us) and that we are all ‘immortal’ too.

In short, I am not entirely convinced that the human perspective has that much meaning. That our appreciation of space-time is facile, yet it is an intrinsic element of our grounding as ‘existing’ entities … whatever that means! :D

Maybe there is some comfort in this, but really it is not much of a comfort at all stating that we are effectively too ignorant to know or acknowledge anything of ‘consequence’ … as ‘consequence’ is no more than a temporal shortsightedness.

I often say to people “think about all the people around you right now, about all the people around the world … they are ALL going to die.” Have that thought to yourself right now in the privation of your head. Is it ‘scary,’ ’liberating,’ ‘threatening,’ ‘confusing’ or something else entirely. Either way it is true, and usually you will experience a bizarre transition through several different attitudes that I find kind of interesting.

There is no likelihood for 'you' to be born. You are simply 1:total humans. Your subjectivity is not probabilistic, it is like any other subjectivity except that you have a strong sense of ego.

I forgot to say - Welcome to the forum.

I'm sorry my memory fails me (gettin' senile, hope it ain't Alzheimers) but I recall reading an account of this guy, a philosopher perhaps, who when angry with his dog for bad behavior used to call it "MAN!", the most insulting word he could think of. Look up misanthropy (re Heraclitus).

On the flip side, Buddhists are of the view that a human life is a once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity to gain merit (good karma) and/or attain nirvana.

Weiji/crisis [danger AND opportunity].

I often say to people “think about all the people around you right now, about all the people around the world … they are ALL going to die.” Have that thought to yourself right now in the privation of your head. Is it ‘scary,’ ’liberating,’ ‘threatening,’ ‘confusing’ or something else entirely. — I like sushi

You can look at ancient ruins that were once thriving cities or towns and now a relic of civilization. :yikes:

The odds of something can be really good or really poor, but so long as there is a chance, and the event occurs, it isn't special necessarily. I think only if there was an omnipotent being that took something with a 0% chance of happening and through tyranny of will made it happen anyway. Now that's special. As far as being present I assume a present moment exists, but our senses will always present the present late. Lol.