In The Event That...

You Bet Your Ass, Literally

by Erin Brodbeck

The Odds Are Against Us: The Gambling Itch from Prehistory to Philadelphia

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Thu., May 3, 6 p.m., $15, University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., 215-898-4000

We've always loved gambling. Ancient Mayans bet on ball games. Greeks flicked dregs of wine at a target to win cash. Cavemen probably considered the possibility of playing roulette almost immediately after inventing the wheel.

But now that Philadelphia is embroiled in a casino controversy, Louise Krasniewicz, senior research scientist at Penn's Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, decided to create a lecture based on her research of gambling's past and its impact on local communities. On a slightly scandalous note, Krasniewicz's investigation of Philly's gaming past revealed that lotteries helped fund costs of the American Revolution.

With local casinos on the horizon, Krasniewicz turned her focus to contemporary gambling and how Philly residents are reacting to the arrival of slots. "What I think makes people anxious about casinos is having these formerly difficult-to-get-to establishments right in their backyards," she says. "Casino gambling will now potentially be an everyday activity, and that means there is less protection from its temptations."