I built this scenario as a test of the monetary value of human life among the relatively well-to-do (white people posting on a poker forum). I'm currently staying in Cambodia, where I'm virtually certain the majority of people would press it for as little as 1,500 dollars.

I think this hypothetical scenario is very useful and applicable to everyday life. For example, there are many jobs in the world that carry a significant risk of death or major injury. People enter in voluntary contracts to do these jobs because they believe the money (or the experience of working the job, in cases like military) adequately compensates them for the risk. Construction workers in America who walk along steel beams in high rise buildings are paid a premium for doing so. On the other hand, in Thailand, motorbike taxis get paid incredibly poor amounts for doing one of the riskiest jobs on the planet. Obviously in the first case with the construction workers, they come from a culture that values human life a lot more and thus there is a low supply of that type of labor, driving prices up. In the latter case there are scads of like minded Thais desperate to make a living, creating a labor surplus, which drives prices down.

So the conclusion is that the value of human life is strongly tied to the amount of money and human capital one has. I think those of you who will not push the button for any amount are either full of shit or stupid. There has to be a number, lower than you might think, that is highly plus EV to take, and depending on how the money is used, may even increase your life expectancy to compensate.