Could The Mega Millions Winner Come From Cedar Falls?

Probably not.

But that doesn't mean you can't try, right?

Those little numbers that are drawn tonight could change someone or a group of someone's lives forever.

Or no one could win and you'd have a shot at an even bigger jackpot next time.

A $640-million Mega Millions prize could buy a lot.

But before you make your wish list here area some statistics on your chances to win.

The jackpot odds this morning sat at one in 176 million.

The Chicago Sun-Times did a little math and had some fun with the odds of winning the jackpot.

“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,” Mike Catalano, a chairman of the mathematics department at Dakota Wesleyan University told the Sun-Times. “Of course, if you buy 50 tickets, you’ve equalized your chances of winning the jackpot with getting struck by lightning.”

According to a Bloomberg study, more than $50 billion was spent on lottery tickets in the United States in 2010.

Iowa ranked 29th in most generous payouts.

The state had a total ticket sales of $256.26 million and awarded $150.45 million in winnings in 2010.

On the flip side, Iowa adults spent $110.54 annually on lottery tickets in the same year.

On Bloomberg's "Sucker Index" the state ranked 33 - not bad considering Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming don't have state lotteries. 

The Sucker Score is calculated by subtracting the total dollar amount of prizes awarded from the total dollar amount of ticket sales.

So, the real question is, do you feel lucky?

If so, or if you want to have a little fun, here's where you can purchase tickets in Cedar Falls for the big jackpot, according to the Iowa Lottery website.

Happy Mega Millions playing to you!

And - sorry, couldn't resist a Hunger Games reference - may the odds be ever in your favor.