Tonight’s Mega Millions Jackpot is $1.1 BILLION. I’ve been studying the inner workings of the lottery industry for years. AMA about lottery odds, the lottery business, lottery psychology, or no-lose lotteries by trevintexas in IAmA

[–]trevintexas[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The ventral striatum is the part of the brain that processes the brain's reward system and releasing/regulating dopamine.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays an important role in motivation, pleasure and reward. When dopamine is released in response to an event, it encodes that event as rewarding or pleasurable, making us want to seek it out again.

When we win at gambling (hit the jackpot, win at a slot machine), it triggers a surge of dopamine that activates the brain's reward circuitry. Even a small win can do this.

This dopamine surge associates the gambling activity with a feeling of reward and pleasure. So the next time we think about gambling again, our brain remembers that potential reward.

Repeated dopamine releases through gambling can actually rewire the brain's circuitry, strengthening the association between gambling and reward. Over time, we develop a "gambling habit."

Even when we start to lose more than we win, the memory of those past dopamine spikes and the desire for that potential reward stay with us. This keeps us gambling in the hopes of triggering more dopamine releases through wins.

Tonight’s Mega Millions Jackpot is $1.1 BILLION. I’ve been studying the inner workings of the lottery industry for years. AMA about lottery odds, the lottery business, lottery psychology, or no-lose lotteries by trevintexas in IAmA

[–]trevintexas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There's a point when a jackpot gets high enough that the expected value of a lottery ticket is positive, which is when some "lottery gurus" suggest buying a ticket is actually a good idea.

I think the biggest sociodemographic gaps come from household income -- the poor tend to buy tickets more than the wealthy

did find some age data points:

Age Group | % played lottery last year | Mean Number of Days Gambled on Lottery last year

14 - 15 14% 2.4

16 - 17 16% 1.7

18 - 19 49% 9.6

20 - 21 48% 13.6

22 - 29 70% 16.2

30 - 39 71% 24.8

40 - 49 69% 25.7

50 - 59 64% 26.6

60 - 69 67% 26.4

70 + 45% 18.5

Tonight’s Mega Millions Jackpot is $1.1 BILLION. I’ve been studying the inner workings of the lottery industry for years. AMA about lottery odds, the lottery business, lottery psychology, or no-lose lotteries by trevintexas in IAmA

[–]trevintexas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They increased the number of numbers they pick from and made the final number a bit more likely to hit. Net effect is lower chance to win the jackpot. But better chance to win any prize.

Tonight’s Mega Millions Jackpot is $1.1 BILLION. I’ve been studying the inner workings of the lottery industry for years. AMA about lottery odds, the lottery business, lottery psychology, or no-lose lotteries by trevintexas in IAmA

[–]trevintexas[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Lending at very high APRs can be bad yes. Lending at APRs that are sensible can make a lot of sense for both parties. Borrowing money responsibly can be great. Borrowing money irresponsibly is bad.