Man is reckless by nature, and this is a fact. Since ancient times, people have come up with all sorts of ways to get out of the everyday routine of life and bring bright moments into their lives – all kinds of competitions, games, and jokes. Today, we decided to tell you about the most interesting facts from the world history of gambling.
Table of Contents
1. Who wants to get a camel? – Or the first Arab lottery
Until now, researchers argue about which gambling game to call the very first. After all, even in ancient times, there were games, although there was still no trace of some kind of currency in ancient times. But there were beautiful shells, pebbles, dried flowers, beautiful concubines, and other “wealth” of that time. One of the most ancient games is a similarity to the current lottery called “Maysir”.
The game arose in Arab countries and its rules were as follows: 10 people collectively acquired one camel. Then it was divided into 7 parts, while the hump was considered the “tastiest” prize, and the camel’s hooves were the most undesirable. Then they took 10 arrows and made marks on them: 3 were empty, and the remaining 7 indicated the corresponding parts of the animal. After that, 10 people took turns pulling arrows and getting what fate decided to give them. This kind of “game” is considered as the first lottery-like event officially registered in history.
2. If Pascal hadn’t had a toothache …
img source: welt.de
The history of the roulette wheel is still shrouded in fog. The main places where this wonderful mechanism could have originated are France or China. According to one of the most plausible versions, its appearance is attributed to the French mathematician Blaise Pascal. He created Pascal’s triangle and reflections on the perpetual motion machine.
By nature, Blaise was very sick and, on the advice of doctors, to “unwind and relieve unnecessary nervous tension,” began to visit the popular gambling houses of that time. There he pondered over the theory of the probability with which one or another number falls on the dice. Later, his teeth ached and in order to forget about the pain, he decided to calculate the probability of winning a lotto with 36 tickets. Later, this number of tickets was transformed into 36 roulette cells. This is how a simple illness in 1655 contributed to the great discovery of the roulette game.
Thanks to the internet you can try your hand at roulette online without leaving your house. You can try it on the Casinonic website.
3. Where do cherries and oranges come from in slot machines?
img source: artstation.com
Initially, slot machines used the usual card suits: clubs, spades, hearts, and diamonds. In the late 19th – early 20th century, the authorities decided to take tough measures to combat gambling and banned the image of card suits. But you just can’t beat the manufacturers of gaming machines so easily!
They came up with machines with pictures of cherries, oranges, apples, and other fruits instead of card suits. When identical fruits were added in a row, the player received … chewing gum with the appropriate fruit flavor. Over time, that “draconian law” against suits of cards was canceled, but fruits have already taken root as pictures on the reels of slot machines.
4. Poker layout in honor of a Russian tennis player
In poker, there is a funny name for the layout called Anna Kournikova. The layout is a combination of AK (ace and king) cards. This is far from the best deal and this hand rarely wins. As, in fact, the tennis player herself: she looks beautiful, but lose a lot. Besides, there are other funny names: K-K: King Kong, 6-6: Highway 66 (after the movie of the same name).
5. Number 4 in China
img source: chinesetouristagency.com
The four in China are traditionally associated with the worst and the most unpleasant: loss, illness, failure, and even death. There is even such a disease as “tetraphobia” – when a person is terrified of this figure and tries to avoid it in every possible way. Why is that? It’s simple – the pronunciation of this number in Chinese sounds like “die”.
Even the city hospital No. 4 in Beijing had to be renamed since no one wanted to be treated in such a “lethal” institution. Therefore, you won’t find in multi-story casinos the 4th floor, and of course, the same number in the list of gambling tables. As a rule, either after the 3rd floor, there is immediately the fifth or the 4th floor is called the 3rd.
6. Einstein found a solution to how to win 100% times at the roulette
From the very moment of the invention of roulette, all casino visitors have been dreaming of finding a way to calculate the winnings. Such calculation systems include the laws of D’Alembert, Donald-Nathanson, Whittaker, and the most famous Martingale theory. Moreover, the list of various ideas can be continued for a very long time. The range of winning theories is truly enormous: from mathematical formulas to the theory of error and friction in the gears that turn the roulette wheel itself.
Amid a fascination with this issue, Albert Einstein once said that he saw through the system. “It’s very easy to win at the casino! You just have to wait for the dealer to turn away and run away with the chips. ” Albert simply adored joking on this topic, which literally brought the great mathematicians, who were vainly trying to uncover the winning system, to a nervous breakdown.
