How would you spend $640M?

People stand in line to buy lottery tickets for the Mega Million Jackpot. (Gabe Hernandez/Associated Press/The Monitor) Millionaire hopefuls are snapping up tickets by the dozens ahead of Friday night's draw for a whopping $640 million US multistate jackpot.

Long lines of eager lottery players have been seen snaking out of convenience stores in 42 states and Washington, D.C., where Mega Millions tickets are sold.

Some players claim to have strategies for realizing their multimillion-dollar dreams.

But with the jackpot odds at 1 in 176 million, even the most detailed strategy is unlikely to help them claim the world-record prize.

Quite simply, the more tickets hopefuls buy, the better their chances of winning, according to Mike Catalano, chair of the mathematics department at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, S.D.

"You are about 50 times as likely to get struck by lightning as to win the lottery, based on the 90 people a year getting struck by lightning," Catalano told AP. "Of course, if you buy 50 tickets, you've equalized your chances of winning the jackpot with getting struck by lightning."

Canadians are eligible for the jackpot, according to the Toronto Star.

"People, they'll email us and want to know, 'Can Canadians win the lottery?' Absolutely," said Mary Cassani, the administrative services manager at Vermont Lottery.

Any winnings by a non-U.S. resident would be subject to a 25 to 30 per cent tax, however.

What would you do with $640 million? Have you ever had luck with the lottery? Would you cross the border to buy a ticket? Share your stories in the field below.


(This survey is not scientific. Results are based on readers' responses.)