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Forums > General Discussion   Shooting the breeze...

Chances of winning the lottery

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Created by evlPanda > 9 months ago, 10 May 2012
evlPanda
NSW, 9207 posts
10 May 2012 2:46PM
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...in great, statistical detail:
simplexify.net/blog/2012/5/6/i-am-a-statistician-and-i-buy-lottery-tickets.html

GreenPat
QLD, 4107 posts
10 May 2012 3:32PM
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DC Woods said...

So why do I still buy lottery tickets? Definitely not for the expected monetary return on investment. I think of it as a discretionary entertainment spend. I get literally hours of enjoyment from fantasizing what I'd do if I won. I happily spend $25 for two hours of entertainment at the movies, and I don't judge the value of that experience based on its expected return. For me, a lottery ticket for the occasional big draw has just as much entertainment value, or more, than the many other things that I spend money on to entertain myself.


Me too.

patsken
WA, 717 posts
10 May 2012 3:00PM
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Why would I buy a lotto ticket ???

I can't even win an argument at home !!!

pierrec45
NSW, 2005 posts
10 May 2012 10:49PM
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I am currently in court as an 'expert' for some lottery organisation (name and address withheld, and no idea why they picked me...). Disgruntled client bought ticket which crossed the deadline due to delays, hence the contention. A winning number became useless in a matter of seconds.

It's a fascinating world, I had worked with them before.
Fascinating, but state lottery is really a disgusting business.

choco
SA, 4187 posts
10 May 2012 10:42PM
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got to be in it to win it

Chris6791
WA, 3271 posts
10 May 2012 11:11PM
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pierrec45 said...

Fascinating, but state lottery is really a disgusting business.



Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think revenue from WA lotteries (other than winnings and admin) is all returned to the community through grants? I don't think the state govt takes a cut?

Nor do we have pokie machines in plague proportions.

Dawn Patrol
WA, 1991 posts
10 May 2012 11:36PM
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Chris6791 said...

pierrec45 said...

Fascinating, but state lottery is really a disgusting business.



Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think revenue from WA lotteries (other than winnings and admin) is all returned to the community through grants? I don't think the state govt takes a cut?

Nor do we have pokie machines in plague proportions.



I also think this is true. So by playing Lotto, I like to think the money i never see again is a donation
(if it's true...)

pierrec45
NSW, 2005 posts
11 May 2012 5:23AM
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Chris6791 said...

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think revenue from WA lotteries (other than winnings and admin) is all returned to the community through grants? I don't think the state govt takes a cut?

Nor do we have pokie machines in plague proportions.

Somewhat true, but couple of caveats here. Firstly, the machinery that run said lotteries tend to be fat, since they write their own check. Also, they constantly try to expend their revenues base, i.e. online gaming, new sort of games, electronic pokies, exporting concepts, etc. This revenue growth is never at the expense of rich people, it's at the expense of...

I would have little confidence in the other machinery that oversees the distribution of money. There would be a lot of wastage there. And I can only hope they're fair.

In some states, a portion of the $$ has to go straight to NPOs, but I'll tell you what: some of them's NPOs were real close to bogus.

Other than that, no problem with them...

Chris6791
WA, 3271 posts
11 May 2012 8:45AM
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I just had a look, 33 cents in the dollar isn't too bad, given winnings/payouts are on top of that, then they ruin it by gicving grant money to just about anyone. Wonder how I could get new kites out of this...?

How much money does Lotterywest raise for the Western Australian community?

From every $1 spent on Lotterywest products, 33 cents is raised for the Western Australian community.

What percentage of grant applications are approved?

Almost all grant applications are approved.

dinsdale
WA, 1227 posts
11 May 2012 11:27AM
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Lotto is a retirement plan for people who can't do maths.

d1
WA, 304 posts
11 May 2012 11:35AM
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dinsdale said...

Lotto is a retirement plan tax for people who can't do maths.


There, fixed that for you.



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Forums > General Discussion   Shooting the breeze...


"Chances of winning the lottery" started by evlPanda