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I do understand that I take risks everyday on the things I do for enjoyment OR survival.
This is not the same as taking a 1-in-100 or 1-in-1000 bet for a billion dollars that I mostly don't need.

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Driving to work every day is not a negligable risk if you consider how many miles you're potentially driving. In the probability forum, there's a thread with a link where you can arrive at the actual probability of death given the number of miles you drive each year. Over your life time, it can easily add up to more than a 1/1000 chance of death.

The same is true for eating unhealthy food. One individual burger won't shorten your life expectancy, but most people eat enough unhealthy food that it has a tangible impact on their life.

You may not be willing to take a 1/100 shot at death for a given value because you're already relatively content with what you have. You arent completely content though. If the certainty of survival was increased, you would be more inclined to take the bet, just as you would be more inclined if the payout was larger (albeit marginally, after a certain point).

There is a given probability and a given payout where you would (and DO) play the game in every day life. Driving really is the best example, because it's a very real risk that we all subject ourselves to - and they arent small risks that we need to take.

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We went over this we need some amount of money to survive so taking the risks makes sense, infinite is a poor choice of words though, but the value to the individual in question is almost so high it doesn't matter.


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What im trying to point out is that the non-essential risks that we take are pretty substantial. Obviously some risks MUST be taken. You need to eat, even if that comes at the risk of choking on your food. You don't NEED to drive to work though in order to live a reasonable life. Public transportation is probably a lot safer, and only slightly more inconvenient.

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When a risk is significantly higher than the small risks you are forced to take in order to increase happiness and life expectancy, like cutting your sandwiches into triangles or having a bath, making love etc.


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The driving example IS a risk above and beyond your normal routine. Not significantly more so. It's meant to explain that everyone has a point where they're willing to risk their life for monetary gain.