This key research priority investigates traditional techniques of prediction, attempts at coping with contingency, and processes of decision-making. Setting out from a primarily cultural-historical perspective, the associated researchers specifically address the question in how far the conceptual framework in which such techniques and practices are embedded varies in different cultural contexts, particularly in East Asia and medieval Europe. The related research activities center on the International Consortium for Research in the Humanities “Fate, Freedom and Prognostication. Strategies for Coping with the Future in East Asia and Europe” (IKGF).