[NSchandler]

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It always amazes me how smart people can be so dumb when it comes to gambling. I have a very smart friend, who ironically was a math major, who tried to argue with me that someone can beat craps by picking the right time to bet on a hot roller.

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Similar situation - I have two friends who for the longest time argued with me that one could beat roulette by picking up on patterns. What was so surprising is that they are two of the best mathematicians I know - both have masters in systems engineering and both are getting their PhDs in experimental design systems.

Their argument was basically "any pattern must end at some point, so the longer a pattern lasts, the more likely it is to end soon." It struck me as an absoludicrous argument, but they just kept telling me that the mathematics behind it is over my head.

Then, I finally figured out what they were talking about - if a pattern last long enough, that indicates that the roulette wheel is flawed. They confirmed that this was all they were saying... DUH