Scratchers Lottery Code Cracked?

February 3rd, 2011   ·   Add Your Comment Now...

Actually, not cracked in any useful way, but it gave this article in Wired magazine an interesting headline!

It’s a very long article, so here’s the short version.

Some lottery scratchcards have visible numbers printed on them. Why? This isn’t explained. They aren’t part of the game so perhaps are just useful during the manufacturing process.

But Mohan Srivastava in Toronto noticed there was more to some numbers than meets the eye. Being a geological statistician, or total numbers nerd, he figured that the visible numbers on certain issues of cards could reveal which ones were winners or losers. Before you even scratched them!

Now that is a serious flaw in the design of those cards, but it doesn’t really help you much of course because you can’t ask to examine a roll of tickets to buy the ones you like..!

And whilst this has been discovered on more than one type of scratchers card, it isn’t at all common.

The bit I didn’t entirely agree with though was that scratchers are not truly random.

Well they are.

I mean, yes there are a fixed number of prizes per scratchcard issued. But those prizes are randomly allocated amongst the total cards printed. So how is that not properly random?

Playing The Lottery: What Really Works

Category: Funny/Crazy Lottery Stories Tags: by

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