The number 24- what’s so special about it? It’s a black even number on the roulette wheel that sites almost opposite the zero on a European roulette wheel and fairly near the 00 on an American.
24 is one of those familiar numbers (like 12) that we see around a lot- and that’s almost entirely down to the fact that there are 24 hours in a day. This is a number that is burned on most people’s minds.
This number is the factorial of 4, written as 4! By that we mean 4x3x2x1=24. Those who are superstitious among you might here alarm bells on that on as the number 4 is often thought of as an unlucky number, especially in China.
It’s one of those numbers with lots of divisors- so you have 1,2,3,4,6 and 12 plus 24 of course. In fact, it’s got the most divisors of any small number- maybe that s why there ended up being 24 hours in a day. The whole 24-hour day thing was started by the ancient Egyptians. They split the day up into 10 hours and then added one hour at each end. Then night was split the same way and we arrived at 24 hours!
The Egyptians loved counting in 12s (the duodecimal system)- this was either down to the fact that there are 12 lunar cycles in a year or because we all have 12 finger joints on each hand (3×4 on each hand if you don’t count the thumb which only has 2 joints. So if you count off with both of your thumbs, you have a handy way of counting up to 24! Not only that, but further east, the Japanese and the Chinese split the year into 24 parts of 15 days.
24 is the atomic number of Chromium (just in case you were wondering). And do you know what you call 10 the power of 24? Well. it’s a yotta
24 is also an important musical number, there being 24 major and minor keys in Western tonal music. That’s why Chopin wrote 24 Preludes.
The number 24 is quite a “neat” number in roulette, and that’s because there are 36 numbers on a roulette wheel (plus the zero or zeroes). So anything that is divisible by 12 is going to fit nicely on the betting layout.
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Betting on the Number 24
So what’s the best way of betting on 24 at the roulette table?
Of course, you can just go ahead and make an Inside Bet on the number- but that won’t give you much table coverage. You can increase your probability of a win by spreading your bet over more numbers with a Split Bet, a Corner Bet, a Street Bet or a 6 Line Bet for example.
If you want more table coverage, go for the central dozen which pays out 2:1 or the top column. Or cover just under half the table with a black, an even or a high bet which will pay out 1:1.
Other ways of covering 24 include the 007 bet (more of a novelty bet this one), a Tiers bet which covers numbers lying opposite the zero on a European wheel or various Finales bets such as the Finales a Cheval Bet on 4,7. In short, you have plenty of options and as always in roulette, the more table you cover, the lower the risk, but the lower the payout %.
What Else Can We Say About 24?
The number 24 pops up quite a bit in the world’s great religions- it assumes some of the aura of 12 which often represents God’s power. Psalm 72 lists 24 things that Christ will do when He sits upon His throne, for example.
The number 24 is often seen as representing the dual harmony of the sky and the earth. It’s often thought of a s a pure number- the highest quality gold is 24 carat gold, for example.
And for numerology fans out there, the number 24 is all about family, Idealists, companionship, diplomacy and safety.
Famous People Born on the 24th
Harry Houdini was born on the 24th March, as was Alan Sugar and Steve McQueen. William I of Orange was born on the 24th April.
And our personal favourite? William Webb Ellis, who invented rugby, was born on the 24th November 1806.
24 the TV Series
24 is also famous as the name of a US TV series on the Fox network, starring Kiefer Sutherland as agent Jack Bauer. Each season has 24 episodes, that track 24 hours in Bauer’s life, using real time narration.
In its time, it was one of the more innovative shows around and worth a look.
And Finally…On 24
We love delving in to numbers- we have our lucky numbers just like anyone else, but just to remind you (we know we don’t really need to), that the odds of the ball dropping in the number 24 pocket on a roulette wheel are exactly the same as the odds of the ball dropping on any other number!
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