For many people it is their lifelong dream to win a lottery ticket. A big win can make all those old dreams and wishes come true. The lottery is several hundred years old, and all that time the desire to win has been on the minds of many people, as they write about on allcarslogos.com. There are a lot of funny stories associated with lotteries. Here are just a few of the more interesting facts.
The first official mention of the lottery
In Europe, the first official mention of the lottery dates back to 1466. The Belgian artist Jan Van Eyck’s wife held a raffle on the 25th anniversary of her husband’s death. Those wishing to win a decent sum of money had to purchase a ticket. The artist’s wife gave all the money raised to help those in need.
This way of collecting money for public needs has become very popular in Europe and around the world. For example, the Sydney Opera House was built using lottery ticket sales.
The lottery made Voltaire famous
The brilliant Voltaire was quite good at statistics. Joining forces and knowledge with his friend Charles Marie de Condamine, he decided to win the French lottery. This game of chance was particularly popular in 1728-1730.
The French government had miscalculated the prizes, so the amount won was incredibly huge. This loophole was exploited by Voltaire and his friend. They bought as many lottery tickets as possible and could win.
Voltaire’s winnings amounted to more than 1 million francs, which allowed him a long time without any financial difficulties and allowed him to concentrate on his work on Candide and other philosophical works that made him famous for many centuries.
Collective gain in Australia
A group of like-minded people got together in Australia and decided to win the top prize in the Virginia Lottery 6 out of 44. Together they formed a syndicate and purchased 5 million lottery tickets. Each ticket was worth $1. The total number of combinations was 7 million.
The lottery syndicate managed to hit the jackpot, which amounted to $27 million. And as a result, the net profit of the like-minded enthusiasts was $22 million.
The lottery organizers, upon learning of this method of winning, were stunned. They decided to ban such a strategy. But in the end, the law, which came into force, stipulated that lottery receipts must first be sold to those who wished to buy a single ticket. And only then to those who wish to buy a large number of lottery tickets.
Knowledge helps you get rich
Joanne Ginter, a professor of statistics and mathematics at Stanford University, has won the top prize in the lottery four times. She is the luckiest woman in lottery history.
The first jackpot Joan won was $5.4 million. The second time she hit the jackpot was $2 million, the third time the jackpot was $3 million and the final record jackpot was $10 million.
The odds of winning 4 jackpots for one person are 1 in 18 septillion. A septillion is one and 24 zeros.
The professor was often accused of fraudulently hacking into the lottery system, but justice campaigners were unable to prove the illegality of Joan’s actions. Therefore, the lucky lady was able to dispose of her winnings in peace.
People spend their lottery winnings in different ways. Most often they give up their old job and start doing something they have always dreamed of. But funny situations also happen. In Argentina a hardened robber, who had been convicted of theft 7 times, won the jackpot. After winning the jackpot, he not only promised he wouldn’t steal again. But he also decided to find all the people he had robbed and return the money he had stolen to them in double figures.