Skip to playerSkip to main content
  • 3 weeks ago

Category

People
Transcript
00:00Meet the man who won the lottery 14 times by using simple math.
00:04To many, winning the lottery is impossible to predict with odds of 1 in 302.5 million.
00:11Yet Stefan Mandel, a Romanian economist, won 14 times using what he called simple math.
00:17Mandel created the combinatorial condensation method in the 1980s.
00:22His approach, if a jackpot was large enough, buy tickets covering every possible combination.
00:26He established the International Lotto Fund, pooling investor money to purchase thousands of tickets.
00:33His first win in Romania netted $19,000, enabling his move to Australia.
00:39Mandel targeted smaller lotteries with fewer numbers, making complete coverage feasible.
00:44His biggest success was a $27 million win in 1992.
00:49Despite winning millions, he declared bankruptcy in 1995 after costly legal battles.
00:55Authorities investigated his operations but found no wrongdoing.
00:59The syndicate operated across multiple countries, meticulously planning ticket purchases.
01:05The CIA and FBI investigated, suspecting fraud, but these inquiries only contributed to his financial collapse.
01:13Mandel's success prompted regulatory changes.
01:16Modern lotteries now prohibit bulk purchasing, use computer-generated tickets, and have surveillance systems.
01:21His mathematical approach proved systematic thinking could overcome seemingly impossible odds under specific conditions,
01:29but also ensured no one else could replicate his success.
01:32Today's lottery systems specifically prevent Mandel's strategy.
01:36Jackpots have grown larger alongside the number of possible combinations,
01:40making it financially unfeasible to buy all combinations.
01:43State lottery commissions now actively work to prevent systematic exploitation,
01:49studying cases like Mandel's and implementing countermeasures.
Be the first to comment
Add your comment

Recommended

0:34