The Only Way to Win and the Unclimbable Mountain

The main reasons why people gamble (and get addicted to gambling) is because every so often not only do they get back .98 cents for every one dollar that they wager but they will get back $2, $10, $50 or more for every dollar that they wager. B.F. Skinner conducted experiments using mice (operant conditioning) where the mice endured crossing a grid and possibly getting an electrical shock in order to get a drink of sugar water or a small dose of cocaine (which the mice craved). The intermittennt or variable reinforcement of getting to the cocaine was a more powerful reinforcer than consistent reinforcement that made the mice endure the electrical shocks (with increased intensity) in order to get more cocaine even though the mice knew that the cocaine was delivered on an intermittent basis. The mice were willing to take a chance at getting shocked in order to get more cocaine. The mice knew that every so often that they would be rewarded with more cocaine. Sounds familiar?

Channeling Dr. McCoy.

We're humans; not damn, unfeeling, unemotional, logical, computer-brained, pointy-eared Vulcans.

Channeling Dr. McCoy.

We're humans; not damn, unfeeling, unemotional, logical, computer-brained, pointy-eared Vulcans.

Nice post BobOrme.

Comments about my having the POV of PRO gambler seem to percolate in on a regular basis and I thought I should clarify a few things.

Obviously, having worked in the large slot teams and with my current partnerships, I have known and know a lot of pro gamblers. My radio show introduced me to even more across many disciplines. One thing I can tell you is that I have little in common, and share next to nothing with pro gamblers. All my close friends (except for 1) are non-gamblers and several of them are psychologists. This has always been the case. Far as I know I'm a standout, and the only active PRO I'm aware of that didn't choose their profession.

70% of my "gambling" career, gambling was for me simply my salary and or hourly job. I have never accumulated a large bankroll, because every time I have reached X savings, I have invested in regular business and left the city. Three times now I've had to return because of business failure, caused due to dishonest partners. Because of my rep and experience I have always (since age 21) had no problem getting solid stable work in the PRO-G biz and it has become my fall-back safety net when the big wide cruel world gets too tough. Despite the safe constant income, I have never seen gambling as anything other than a stepping stone to lead me to something better. I could never be happy in a zero sum activity.

Ask any gambler that knows me and they will be the first to tell you that we most assuredly do not share perspectives.

I have far more in common with non-gamblers, and fall soundly in the category of personality type that does not enjoy winning, or losing, or risk of any kind. Personal gain for me has never been emotionally rewarding and I instead choose to define my self worth by my ability to help others.

Of course it sounds familiar (how about identical). I was simply hoping against hope, that if you pointed it out to them, humans could make slightly better decisions than mice. Humans are clearly better at one thing than mice, articulating and justifying their bad decisions...oh and having their plans go Gang aft agley. Mice plans tend to pan out more often (or so I hear).

Of course I should say the tests on mice were inherently biased, the researchers had no way to question the mice to distinguish between the real addicts, and the ones that were only recreational users and merely having fun...(no this was not intended to be serious).

Just saying...

Um, isn't investing into a small business or start-up one of the highest risk ventures out there?
Your track record would appear to validate that assumption.

Yes one could indeed make that argument. In all three cases I was very stressed when I had to put my savings on the line, and I did not enjoy it (that is what I said). It was however a necessary risk if I wanted to leave Vegas and start a new career. Risk adverse, doesn't mean one will avoid all risk all the time. It only means one doesn't invite it, or enjoy it, and avoids it when possible. If one wishes to start a business, avoiding all risk isn't really an option.

Inherent unavoidable risk is in a separate category from contrived voluntary risk.

One could make a very sound argument that marriage is one of the greatest risks most of us make. Marriage is more or less required in our society to raise a family and live one's life. I've yet to hear anyone make a similar argument for the indispensability of gambling.

People have to eat. People have to sleep. People have to take some risks to live. That risk does not HAVE to take the form of casino games.

They really aren't similar.

The Huygens Probe landed on Titan not Titian.


Titan____________________________Titian______________________________

Given that Titian died more than 50 years before Christiaan Huygens was born, it is unlikely he was ever probed by Huygens.

DonDiego grew up with an intense interest in space exploration; he witnessed three Saturn 5 Moon Mission launches from the Cape Kennedy Launch complex or nearby. He still follows all sorts of scientific stuff avidly.
DonDiego also follows the NFL with great interest. Today he finds himself in the State of Nevada in possession of a 3-team, 6-point teaser for Week 4 of the 2011 Season - comprising the Eagles/Cardinals/Chargers.
DonDiego is interested in more than 2 things. In fact he's interested in more than 3 things! In fact, . . .

Cute DonDiego...thanks for correcting my spelling.

I'm currently hoping to land on and probe Tatiana.

You never know. There was a lot of grave robbing done in the name of science back in them thar days.

To a lot of people Sunday means football. To me it's Science Sunday where I catch up on all of the shows I've recorded from the Science Channel during the week.

I can imagine someone with a high risk aversion could have a safe job in a safe industry building up a modest pension while living is a safe location eating healthy foods and enjoying safe hobbies. Then when they want to go wild they can enter a casino with $20 and "risk it all". In this case the casino allows them to have a measured amount of risk to balance out their life. While balance is necessary, the casino is not the only way to add measured risk to your life, but it can be a safe and controlled way to have risk. I love the concept of "safe and controlled risk".

Tatiana?