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A comment on The expected value of the game is positive regardless of Ballmer’s strategy. Parent comment

Re:The expected value of the game is positive regardless of ... by contravariant on Friday September 06, 2024 @08:18AM (#41465482)
What idiot wouldn't put destruction of the world as '-infinity' of value?

Equating money with value is a simple trap as well. Who cares if you can win millions when a single loss wipes out all your savings? Since anything below a certain level of money leaves you trapped with no way out it could be argued that the value of being destitute is not 0 but -infinity which makes any risk of losing all money unacceptable. This is especially true in a world where people are willing to offer strange bets with arbitrarily high expected value as long as you have some money.

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Re:The expected value of the game is positive regardless of ... by Joker_vD on Friday September 06, 2024 @09:38AM (#41466100)
> What idiot wouldn't put destruction of the world as '-infinity' of value?

Literally anyone, you included. Every day, there is a chance that the roof collapse on you while you're sleeping; that's -Inf of value! Yet you don't put infinity resources into preventing that since you consider the probability low enough to not obsess over it.

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Re:The expected value of the game is positive regardless of ... by lern_too_spel on Friday September 06, 2024 @12:59PM (#41467806)
No, I don't put infinity resources into it because that would make me die even earlier due to not having money or time to do what is necessary to stay alive.
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Re:The expected value of the game is positive regardless of ... by chii on Friday September 06, 2024 @08:31AM (#41465551)
> value of being destitute is not 0 but -infinity which makes any risk of losing all money unacceptable.

that's just loss aversion codified.

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