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Mathematics

Mathematicians found a guaranteed way to win the lottery in 2023

A pair of mathematicians studied the UK National Lottery and figured out a combination of 27 tickets that guarantees you will always win, but they tell New Scientist they don't bother to play

By Matthew Sparkes

26 December 2023

David Cushing and David Stewart calculate a winning solution

Earlier this year, two mathematicians revealed that it is possible to guarantee a win on the UK national lottery by buying just 27 tickets, despite there being 45,057,474 possible draw combinations. The pair were shocked to see their findings make headlines around the world and inspire numerous people to play these 27 tickets – with mixed results – and say they don’t bother to play themselves.

David Cushing and David Stewart at the University of Manchester, UK, used a mathematical field…

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