Slot machine Archives - bettingsblog

A former australian gambling addict has launched landmark federal lawsuits against a major casino operator and the manufacturer of a popular slot machine {.bbc.com}, claiming she was misled about her chances of winning.

Shonica guy claims that due of the design of the dolphin treasure poker machine, players have unreasonable expectations.
She contends that these devices, known as “Pokies” in australia, are illegal for consumers.
Both the casino network and the manufacturer have strongly denied her assertions.
The complaint was filed in melbourne on tuesday.

Slot machine {.bbc.com} maker aristocrat has declared that it “Vigorously defending the claim,” while casino juggernaut crown has declared that it “Emphatically rejects any suggestion that its games are designed to encourage problem gambling, or in any way fail to comply with all relevant regulations and laws.”

Australians have a national obsession with betting and have the highest gambling loss per head in the world, {.bbc.com} with an average loss of us$1,130 (£850) a year, according to new statistics from uk consultancy h2 gambling capital.

Designed to Enthral US

According to ms. Guy, playing “Pokies” cost her fourteen years of life. She said that she wanted to prevent other “Problem-gamblers” {bbc.com} from falling into the same trap that she had, even if she did not want any financial recompense from the court.

“We have been told we are the only ones to blame for pokies addiction for far too long,” she said to reporters on tuesday.
“I want this case to show the machines are misleading… And designed to get us hooked.” {bbc.com}
Her case is over the design of the dolphin treasure machines at crown’s main casino in melbourne.
An a$11.3 billion gambling merger in australia was authorised.
Australia’s ‘pokies’ addiction comes at a high cost
The machines provide players with cash prizes when they align consecutive symbols across a row of spinning reels.
Ms. Guy and her lawyers contend that the odds are inflated because, {.bbc.com} although the fifth reel has 44 symbols, making it more harder for a player to win, the other four reels have about the same number of symbols—around 30 on each.
She also argues that it is deceptive for the robots to claim to be giving people 87% of their revenues.
Spokesman for the alliance for gambling reform tim costello told the sydney morning herald that ms. Guy was fighting a goliath against the “Pokie” industry, which is as powerful in the country as the national rifle association is in the us. {bbc.com}
But according to gaming technologies association head ross ferrar, the industry is certain that its products are authentic. {bbc.com}
“They’re heavily legislated and regulated, and they comply with national standards,” he said.

www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg34nexw0e9o

Slot machines; The finest lengthy science and technology reads of the week, (bbc.com) including articles about the psychology of price tags and how technology has influenced our tendency to gamble.

Artificial Intelligence | Slot Machines Taking Over

Though, given anticipated advancements, it is quite improbable that a clever robot would take over the world and replace you in your profession. {www.bbc.com/future/article/20150508-the-secrets-of-slot-machines} Our aspirations for artificial intelligence have been revitalised by deep learning; (bbc.com) with only a few human cues, machines can create rules for identifying and classifying objects in their environment, frequently more accurately than people. They do not, however, as of yet, possess goals or ambitions. (3,600 words, The Economist)

Gambling | Addiction Engineers

Visits to the Las Vegas headquarters of Bally, the creator of the electromechanical slot machine, and IGT, the market leader in video poker, (bbc.com) provided insights into the technology of addiction. RNGs with displays are what gambling machines are. Everything else is promotional material. “Playing the same games on curved screens increased the amount of time spent 30-80%.” A payback rate of 45% causes the client to become less risk-averse. (Andrew Thompson, 4,800 words, Verge)

Data | The psychology of cost

“A gigantic list of strategies” is the subtitle. It’s a lengthy read—nearly the length of an e-book—but it’s readily readable and explains rationally why prices for goods and services are set as they are, (bbc.com) down to the dollar signs missing from restaurant menus. {www.bbc.com/future/article/20150508-the-secrets-of-slot-machines} And the “charm pricing,” the 0.99 price tags on everything? It’s important to learn the anchor number, which is the first digit. We are readily tricked, even when we believe we understand the strategy. (Seven,500 words, Nick Kolenda)

The Democratisation of space flight

As rockets and satellites become more accessible to practically every nation on Earth as well as countless private entities, new regulations are required to govern space travel and traffic. Space was designated for superpower use when the present Outer Space Treaty was ratified over fifty years ago. A well-funded scientific club at a high school can now launch a satellite. Costs will decrease much further as computer and 3D printing technologies advance. (William Welser IV and Dave Baiocci, Foreign Affairs, 2,250 words)

Philosophy | Is it possible for us to take control of our life?

The former archbishop of Canterbury reviews books on freedom and free will by Julian Baggini, John Grey, and Alfred Mele. We have become captives of a vision where being free means having complete control over who or what I am. (bbc.com) A combination of existentialist discourse and misguided religious fear has shaped us to believe that we must be the direct cause of our own acts in order to be accountable for them.

Evolution | How I see life

A conversation on evolution. There are no references to “God” throughout. “If and when we find life elsewhere in the universe, (bbc.com) it will be based on something akin to DNA—that is, a self-replicating, extremely high quality coding system that can produce a vast array of variations, just like DNA can. Thus the theory, the one universal truth about life that we know, {www.bbc.com/future/article/20150508-the-secrets-of-slot-machines} is what I refer to as universal Darwinism. Life is Darwinian. (Dawkins, Richard, Edge, 9,860 words)

Automobiles | Envision taking a test drive in a gasoline powered vehicle.

Petrol automobiles are not only noisy and polluting, but they also cost a lot to operate. What is the cost of filling up at home and what is the number of free stations nearby? (bbc.com) The vendor gave us a very perplexed look before clarifying that there are no free gas stations and that automobiles cannot be refuelled at home. (bbc.com) It seems like you have to drive to the gas station multiple times a month at exorbitant prices to refill your automobile with gasoline. (Tibor Blomhall, 1,860 words, Tesla Club Sweden)

www.bbc.com/future/article/20150508-the-secrets-of-slot-machines

Slot machine

Australia’s Landmark Slot Machine Litigation Has Begun By bbc.com