Human beings have indulged in games of chance since before recorded history. Archeological sites in both the Old World and the New World yield gambling bones, dice, and counters. The Old and New Testaments mention the casting of lots to determine the distribution of property, presumably as an expression of God's will. In addition, the classical literature of both Eastern and Western cultures includes many accounts of gambling, often with dramatic consequences. Lotteries have been popular in Asia and Europe for centuries. The first European government-sponsored lottery was established by Queen Elizabeth I in sixteenth-century England. The thirteen American colonies and the early American universities—including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Columbia—were all supported in part by lotteries.

Gamblers play the slot machines at the Casino Sandia, a gaming facility at the Sandia Pueblo north of Albuquerque, New Mexico, January 10, 1997. (Miguel Gandert...