Powerball

Powerball is an American lottery game offered by 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It is coordinated by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), a nonprofit organization formed by an agreement with U.S. lotteries. Powerball's minimum advertised jackpot is $40 million (annuity); Powerball's annuity is paid in 30 graduated installments; winners may choose cash instead.

Drawings are held Wednesday and Saturday evenings at 10:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Since October 7, 2015, the game uses a 5/69 (white balls) + 1/26 (Powerballs) matrix from which winning numbers are chosen, resulting in odds of 1 in 292,201,338 of winning a jackpot per play. Each play costs $2, or $3 with the Power Play option. (Originally, Powerball plays cost $1; when PowerPlay began, such games were $2.) The official cutoff for ticket sales is 10 p.m. Eastern Time; some lotteries discontinue sales earlier. The drawings are usually held at the Florida Lottery’s studio in Tallahassee.

Gyroscopic exercise tool

A gyroscopic exercise tool is a device used to exercise the wrist as part of physical therapy or in order to build palm, forearm and finger strength. It can also be used as a unique demonstration of some aspects of rotational dynamics. The device consists of a tennis ball-sized plastic or metal shell around a free-spinning mass, which is started with a short rip string. Once the gyroscope inside is going fast enough, a person holding the device can accelerate the spinning mass to high revolution rates by moving the wrist in a circular motion.

Mechanics

The device consists of a spinning mass inside an outer shell. The shell almost completely covers the mass inside, with only a small round opening allowing the gyroscope to be manually started. The spinning mass is fixed to a thin metal axle, each end of which is trapped in a circular, equatorial groove in the outer shell. A lightweight ring with two notches in it for the ends of the axle rests in the groove. This ring can slip in the groove; it holds the spinning gyroscope centered in the shell, preventing the two from coming into contact (which would slow the gyro down), but still allowing the orientation of the axle to change.

Powerball (Australia)

Powerball is a lottery operated by New South Wales Lotteries in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, Tattersalls in Victoria and Tasmania, Golden Casket in Queensland, the South Australia Lotteries Commission, and Lotterywest in Western Australia.

The new Australian Powerball since March 2013 draws six regular numbers from one pool of 40, with the Powerball drawn from a separate pool of 20 numbers. The highest Australian Powerball jackpot was A$80 million in 2009; most jackpot wins are not shared by multiple tickets. However, there are major differences between the Australian and American versions; in the US, a ticket automatically wins by matching the Powerball (the American game has 39 Powerballs) while in Australia a minimum of three numbers are needed being two regular numbers plus the Powerball. The American jackpot is annuitized (with a cash option) while Australians winners always collect in lump sum. American lottery prizes are taxable, whilst there are no taxes collected on Australian Powerball winners. Still another difference is that all Australian Powerball prizes are parimutuel, versus fixed prizes on American non-jackpot prizes.