given a consistent universe wouldn't knowing the dynamics of the big bang mean we can predict the universe

Question

and also mean that there is really only one way things happen?

Answer 1

that is what Stephan Hawking tried to explain in his best seller book "a brief history of time"
i think u might want to read it, if u have not yet

Answer 2

One of the best questions I've ever seen here, but one with no clear answer.

Scientists disagree about whether we can ever predict what will happen in really complicated systems. The issue is that quantum mechanics implies that the outcome of a given interaction may be uncertain. That is, given particles A and B coming together in a certain way the result might be that situation 1 occurs 35% of the time and situation 2 occurs 65% of the time. That might mess exact predictions up. Another way of looking at it is you can predict how many atoms of a pound of a radioactive substance will decay in a minute, but cannot predict when a particular atom will decay. It's the same deal.

On a philosophical level, a great and unresolved debate is whether we have free will and can make decisions about our life, or whether everything is set for us at birth. No one knows the answer to that one, either.

More about the last issue:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_will

Answer 3

Given a clockwork universe, then yes, knowing all of the conditions at any one time would allow you, via some very complicated differential equation, predict the trajectory of the universe through all time after that (and all time before that).

However, experiments have shown us that we do not live in such a universe. This is why we now use quantum mechanics, which assigns probabilities to the possible trajectories of a particle. It has been shown that at small scales particles move in random directions. When a high number of particles move together, the ensemble may appear to travel in one direction; however, none of the individual particles have states that are directly determined by previous states. A particle's future is determined partly by its past and partly random.

Answer 4

To use the properties of physical mechanics we need to know the intial conditions. The problem is, the whole idea is that the big bang is a sigularity. Before that sigularity all properties of mechanics as we know them break down. So we can not acertain the intial conditions. As stated previously "A brief history.." by Hawkings might be a good read for you.