5 replies to this topic

[Mind]

I have been thinking about the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics and how it affects our lives, and my life in particular, because some strange things have been happenning recently. Admittedly this is a fun topic and nothing much to do with physical immortality....but I thought it might make for a good read.

I can't win at roulette. Once or twice a year my wife and I go to a casino for recreation. I play the games of chance, and win a little here and there, except for roulette. When I play roulette, I always go with the 50/50 odds (black or red, odd or even), but never win. My first trip ever to a Casino (1997 in Reno) I wanted to play roulette. I had 80 dollars and bet on 4 spins ($20 per spin). I lost all 4 spins. Each time I have been to a casino since then I have played roulette. Sometimes just a couple spins, sometimes 5 or 10 (always betting the 50/50 odds and betting only a buck or two most of the time), and I have never won a spin in 7 years. It is very odd. Too odd. What the heck is going on? I was at a casino last night for my wife's birthday and it happenned again. 1 spin, $20, no luck. (After that I just sat in the bar and watched football) The total spins over the years probably ranges between 30 and 60. I can't imagine flipping a coin 30 or 60 times and always getting heads. Last night, I tried to convince my friends to bet big money on the opposite of my bet, but they wouldn't do it. I figure if everyone bet opposite of me, the best thing that could happen is they would win money, but at the least it might break the "curse".

Anyway, I thought for a second that maybe I live in a quantum reality where I never win at roulette. More than likely it is just bad luck, bound to turn around someday.

[susmariosep]

The way I see it, gambling being a game of chance, at least in regard to real chance understood as physical random occurrence, if a person plays roulette he will win or lose in the course of time if he keeps playing.

The losing streak can be very long, because time in terms of random occurrence can be randomly very long in you losing streak, similarly also in your winning streak, and the win and lose occurrences can happen seemingly alternately in a loose sequence so that you think that in any roulette session you will come out even.

From the logic of chance then you should come out even one day in the time you play roulette long enough for the even situation to eventually take on appearance. At this point better quit, because you might begin a losing streak or continue from the even condition to further wins. But to be safe you should quit, because while chance is eternal in time you are not and your money is even more finite than your number of years chance had apportioned to you from eternity.

Since you play roulette in a casino, the owners are not in the business of letting chance rule, but committing physical violence on chance to their advantage and to your loss. How much advantage is allowed by law to casino operators? I am sure the law governing casinos allows some edge to the owners/operators; otherwise they would never be ahead in the big picture and long run or they would be operating illegally.

Now, I have never been to any casino and I don't gamble, not even playing poker which I think is not a pure chance game because of the element of the psychology of the players -- of course everyone knows that, yet as a thinking person those are my thoughts about roulette betting.

Maybe I am correct, gambling in a way is not a chance game in terms of the players against each other, because the psychology of the players can determine the better players as compared to the poor players who are eventually losers.

But if you play against yourself it's no fun and no excitement, not as when you play against others.

Just my two cents.

Susma

[Kalepha]

Mind, that’s incredible. It’s something like 0.0000000000284% (or more than 35 trillion-to-one odds against) probability of that happening to anyone.

[Lazarus Long]

Close your eyes and flip a coin in order to choose your bet. You should give up on trying to think ahead of the odds and let the odds work for you. Apparently something in your system is dead wrong.

I like the idea of betting against you Mind. Too bad your friends didn't understand.

BTW the roulette table is the most favorable game to the house. If you want any favorable odds in a house of chance play Black Jack. I believe the only thing that favors the house more than the Wheel O'Fortune are the *One Armed Bandits.* [wis]

Anyone remember the story of the MIT Card Counter Club? [glasses]

[DJS]

Craps also has relatively good odds.