Final answer:
Stars and galaxies in the universe are not randomly distributed but are chiefly contained within clusters and superclusters that inhabit the filamentary structures in space, with large voids in between them.
Step-by-step explanation:
The distribution of stars and galaxies in the universe is a fundamental question in the study of cosmology. On a large scale, the universe is homogeneous and isotropic, which means it appears the same in all directions and places, disregarding the evolutionary changes over time. This concept is encapsulated in what we call the cosmological principle. However, this uniformity is on a very large scale, and when we look closer, we find that galaxies are not spread uniformly.
Galaxies tend to clump together into clusters and these clusters can group into even larger superclusters. Within these structures, galaxies are connected through filamentary structures stretched across vast voids of space. Most galaxies, like the Milky Way, are contained within these clusters and superclusters, occupying less than 10% of the total volume of space. Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, is part of a cluster known as the Local Group, which holds at least 54 member galaxies. When looking up at the night sky, nearly all visible stars are part of the Milky Way, and it is packed with hundreds of billions of stars, gas, and interstellar dust.
Based on the provided information and the understanding of galactic structures, stars and galaxies are neither uniformly spread out nor randomly distributed. They are chiefly contained within widely separated galaxies that form part of clusters and superclusters in filamentary structures across the universe.