Ten Decade-Old Casinos
A casino is an establishment for gambling. It offers customers a range of gaming activities such as slots and table games, often in conjunction with hotels, restaurants, retail shops or other tourist attractions. The gambling activities are overseen by a gambling commission or control board to ensure fair play and that players are treated with respect. In addition, some casinos host entertainment events such as concerts and stand-up comedy.
The history of the casino is largely tied to the evolution of gambling itself. The first documented instances of gambling date to 2300 BC in China, while dice appeared around 500 AD and cards in the early 1400s. Today, the casino is one of the most popular forms of gambling worldwide.
These ten casinos, decked out with opulent furnishings and overflowing bars, take gambling to the next level. The world’s most decadent temples of temptation, where throwing your chips down is elevated to an art form.
Due to the large amount of money handled within a casino, both patrons and staff may be tempted to cheat or steal, either in collusion or independently. As such, security measures have become a major component of casino design. Among other things, this includes “chip tracking,” where betting chips with built-in microcircuitry interact with electronic systems to allow casinos to monitor the exact amounts wagered minute-by-minute and quickly discover any statistical anomalies. Other technologies include fully automated machines that replace dealers, and “virtual roulette,” where a wheel is electronically monitored to detect any deviation from its expected value.