There’s a part of us that just plain likes to gamble, and lotteries feed into this inextricable human impulse by dangling the promise of instant riches. But there’s also the fact that a lot of people don’t have much money to start with, and winning the lottery can give them some hope of improving their financial prospects.
Lottery draws are random events, so the odds of winning a prize are roughly proportional to the number of tickets purchased. Some people have found success by choosing their numbers based on birthdays or other lucky combinations, but Kapoor says that’s not the best way to pick winners. “It’s important to remember that each draw is independent of all previous drawings,” she says, so picking the same number every time can actually reduce your chances of winning. Instead, try to choose a mix of even and odd numbers, as only about 3% of past winners have been all one or all the other.
Lotteries have been around for centuries, but they first became popular in the United States after the Revolutionary War. A Continental Congress initiative failed, but a number of state legislatures adopted public lotteries to raise money for projects and colleges. Private lotteries were also common, as a means to sell products or property for more money than could be obtained through regular sales. The early years of state lotteries fueled public support because they were seen as sources of “painless” revenue: taxpayers voluntarily spending their money for the benefit of society, rather than the government collecting taxes. Religious and moral sensibilities turned against gambling in general starting around 1800, with the lottery’s role as a source of corruption fueling the backlash.