discounting obvious tricks like “bet against the professor lasting the year,” which by now nobody would fall for anyway.
Well, you can bet with the professor. Specifically, you offer him a bet that functions as insurance or a hedge for him: bet he doesn’t last the year, and if he does (very good) then he loses a smaller bet (a little bad), but if he fails (very bad) then he wins a bet (a little good).
This, unfortunately, can’t insure against anthropic risks (the professor dying due to the curse). But it does work in general, and it increases in effectiveness with the effectiveness of the curse. You could probably structure it in such a way that even your absconding scenario works: something like have him sign a loan due in a year, hand over a Gringotts vault filled with your end of the bet, and then if he leaves he can stop by Gringotts on the way out.
Well, you can bet with the professor. Specifically, you offer him a bet that functions as insurance or a hedge for him: bet he doesn’t last the year, and if he does (very good) then he loses a smaller bet (a little bad), but if he fails (very bad) then he wins a bet (a little good).
This, unfortunately, can’t insure against anthropic risks (the professor dying due to the curse). But it does work in general, and it increases in effectiveness with the effectiveness of the curse. You could probably structure it in such a way that even your absconding scenario works: something like have him sign a loan due in a year, hand over a Gringotts vault filled with your end of the bet, and then if he leaves he can stop by Gringotts on the way out.