...It’s hard to fathom how unlikely it is to beat odds of one in 292.2 million for Powerball or one in 302.5 million for Mega Millions.
To get a sense of your chances, Steven Bleiler, a mathematics and statistics professor at Portland State University, said people should imagine a swimming pool 40 feet (12.2 meters) wide, 120 feet (36.6 meters) long and 5 feet (1.5 meters) deep, filled to the brim with M&Ms, only one of which is green. To win, all a player must do is jump in blindfolded and wade around until finding that single green candy.
Good luck everybody.
In a way I won the lottery by sending my oldest to our local state university, whose tuition was paid almost a hundred per cent by Powerball proceeds. I am therefore happy occasionally to join the other suckers hopping into that pool for the green M & M.
ReplyDeleteI've tended to view it as cheap entertainment... provided your not spending more than the minimum amount needed for a single set of numbers. Most people will spend a lot more than $2 in a trip to a movie theatre and the concept is the same. Basically your renting a fantasy. But spending more than the minimal $2 moves you into the realm of throwing good money away since nothing the ordinary person could spend would materially improve your chances of winning.
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