Roullete – a gambling game in which a small ball is spun around on a roulette wheel and bets are made as to which red or black or odd or even numbered compartment the ball will come to rest in. The game emerged in Europe during the 18th century and is played against the “house” or casino bank. Bets may be placed on a single number, various groups of numbers, colors (red or black), whether the number is odd or even, and if the number is high (19-36) or low (1-18). A 37th compartment, painted green on European wheels and red on American ones, carries the sign 0; this zero-carrying compartment was added to prevent cheating by players by concealing devices in the wheel or table.
The game starts when a player makes one or more bets on the table and the croupier, a dealer who operates the game for the casino, spins the wheel. When the wheel comes to a stop and a winning number is determined, the player’s wagered chips are paid out according to their betting odds. Each bet type has its own odds. Outside bets, for example, on the first, second or third dozen, pay out 2-1; these bets are clearly marked on the table.
Despite a variety of bets and the large number of possible outcomes, the game is considered a fair game by mathematicians because it has no house edge. A simple search on the Internet will return many (possibly millions) of systems for playing roulette and supposedly gaining an advantage over the house. Many of these are easy to understand and well described, but many others are not.