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In the 'but then it gets even more complicated' spirit: When the author mentions buying a ticket in the end, for the entertainment of fantasising about a poten

by feral 13y ago

In the 'but then it gets even more complicated' spirit: When the author mentions buying a ticket in the end, for the entertainment of fantasising about a potential windfall, I was reminded of this interesting Less Wrong article: "Lotteries: A Waste of Hope" which argues even that is a bad reason to play lotteries. http://lesswrong.com/lw/hl/lotteries_a_waste_of_hope/ http://lesswrong.com/lw/hl/lotteries_a_waste_of_hope/

MartinCron 13y ago
Entertainment derived from fantasy is fine. I've found that I can cut out the whole "buying a lottery ticket" part and the fantasy is just as rewarding.
jmharvey 13y ago
OP here. Interesting article. "Fantasizing" isn't what I was trying to describe in the "entertainment" section. I 86'ed a longer explanation of what I meant, but here goes: When I say, "I also enjoy letting my mind wander and think about what I’d do with a nine-figure windfall," I actually mean that I think about it, not that I fantasize about it. Some of my problems would go away. Others wouldn't. I'd have a whole new set of issues to think about. And I'd still come in to work [0] tomorrow. When I think about what it would be like to win the Powerball jackpot, I tend to reflect on some of the issues raised in PG's "Cities and Ambition" essay [1], when he talks about the things different cities value: "New York is pretty impressed by a billion dollars even if you merely inherited it. In Silicon Valley no one would care except a few real estate agents. What matters in Silicon Valley is how much effect you have on the world." The utility I get from buying a lottery ticket isn't about dreams of private jets and caviar. It's the perspective I gain: if I didn't have to think about money ever again, what would I want to do with my life? I think I'd keep working on startups. What would I do differently? I'm not sure, but I'd start with buying a better set of wheels for my bike. In the bigger picture, I'd probably spend more time on projects that have the potential to have huge impact, and think less about whether a particular idea can be a profitable business. It's easy to get caught up in the patterns of daily life. Thinking about winning a jackpot makes me evaluate my life from 30,000 feet. I guess I could do that for free, but at least for me, that $2 gets me thinking a little differently. And to me, that's where the value is. [0] http://zeromailer.com http://zeromailer.com [1] http://www.paulgraham.com/cities.html http://www.paulgraham.com/cities.html
- Dylan16807 13y ago
  Your end result is useful, but it's bad that the most effective way to get there is wasting money to trick your stupid human brain.
  - brownbat 13y ago
    I often think about finding a winning lottery ticket for the same reason. I find the odds indistinguishable from winning after purchasing a ticket.
snowwrestler 13y ago
Hope is not rational, which makes it sort of a challenging topic for LessWrong.

by feral 13y ago

MartinCron 13y ago

Entertainment derived from fantasy is fine. I've found that I can cut out the whole "buying a lottery ticket" part and the fantasy is just as rewarding.

jmharvey 13y ago

OP here. Interesting article. "Fantasizing" isn't what I was trying to describe in the "entertainment" section. I 86'ed a longer explanation of what I meant, but here goes: When I say, "I also enjoy letting my mind wander and think about what I’d do with a nine-figure windfall," I actually mean that I think about it, not that I fantasize about it. Some of my problems would go away. Others wouldn't. I'd have a whole new set of issues to think about. And I'd still come in to work [0] tomorrow. When I think about what it would be like to win the Powerball jackpot, I tend to reflect on some of the issues raised in PG's "Cities and Ambition" essay [1], when he talks about the things different cities value: "New York is pretty impressed by a billion dollars even if you merely inherited it. In Silicon Valley no one would care except a few real estate agents. What matters in Silicon Valley is how much effect you have on the world." The utility I get from buying a lottery ticket isn't about dreams of private jets and caviar. It's the perspective I gain: if I didn't have to think about money ever again, what would I want to do with my life? I think I'd keep working on startups. What would I do differently? I'm not sure, but I'd start with buying a better set of wheels for my bike. In the bigger picture, I'd probably spend more time on projects that have the potential to have huge impact, and think less about whether a particular idea can be a profitable business. It's easy to get caught up in the patterns of daily life. Thinking about winning a jackpot makes me evaluate my life from 30,000 feet. I guess I could do that for free, but at least for me, that $2 gets me thinking a little differently. And to me, that's where the value is. [0] http://zeromailer.com http://zeromailer.com [1] http://www.paulgraham.com/cities.html http://www.paulgraham.com/cities.html

Dylan16807 13y ago
Your end result is useful, but it's bad that the most effective way to get there is wasting money to trick your stupid human brain.
- brownbat 13y ago
  I often think about finding a winning lottery ticket for the same reason. I find the odds indistinguishable from winning after purchasing a ticket.

snowwrestler 13y ago

Hope is not rational, which makes it sort of a challenging topic for LessWrong.