• enkers@sh.itjust.works
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    7 months ago

    I disagree. The serious answer is you have to be the one person that gets lucky.

    Take 1024 people each with $1000. They all play roulette and go all in every round, half on black half on red. After 10 rounds, 1023 people have lost all their money, and one has won a million dollars.

    The person who “made it” didn’t do anything different, or play a +EV game. He just got lucky.

    • PaintedSnail@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      Roulette is not a positive sum game, though. If you keep playing, eventually you will lose everything to the house.

      A positive sum game is where repeated plays will average out to a net gain. The secret is having enough initial capital to keep you alive if your initial gambles don’t pan out. People living paycheck to paycheck don’t have that

      • enkers@sh.itjust.works
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        7 months ago

        You’re correct, but you’re also being a bit pedantic and ignoring the point OP is trying to make. It still illustrates the point just fine at 47.4% instead of 50%. Odds of winning 10 in a row go from 1:1,024 to 1:1,746.