karant wrote:
Hello,
In order to conclude that winning a loto is independent on the number of people playing the lotto requires one assumption that the set of numbers does not increase when there are more people.
For e.g. - for first week there are 100 participants, so numbers 1 to 100 are distributed among the participants and out of those 100, five numbers are lucky numbers.
Now, suppose in second week, the number of participants is increased to 1000, so now numbers 1 to 1000 are distributed among the larger participants. Hence, probability of winning is decreased.
In my opinion, if the stem had mentioned the range of numbers, may be 1 to 100 or 1 to 1000, distributed in Big Bucks lottery system, then it would have been more sound.
Thanks
That is not how the lottery is played.
How do lottery tickets work?
Players can either choose their own six numbers (five regular and one Powerball) or have the computer terminals randomly pick numbers for them. If every number on your ticket matches the winning numbers in the order they are drawn, you win the jackpot prize. ... Each ticket costs the player $1
This is what a lotto ticket would look like:
Attachment:
160115171656-lottery-winners-revealed-on-tv-lawyer-reaction-randy-zelin-nr-00000130-exlarge-169.jpg [ 63.72 KiB | Viewed 5915 times ]
People can pick any 5 numbers of their choice. Hence, 10 people could pick the same 5 random numbers. If those numbers are called, they share the jackpot. Hence, it is possible that no one wins if no one picks the winning combination.
The question assumes a certain knowledge about how the lottery works because it is something which is very well known in US. For international students, it could be tricky and an official question would give all details of how it works to ensure a level playing field.