A narrow notch, groove, or opening, such as a keyway in a machine or a slit for a coin in a vending machine. The word slot is also used as a noun meaning the position in a group, series, or sequence, or the place or time for something to take place.
The American Heritage(r) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright
Several factors contribute to the problem of slot addiction. Among them, are the large jackpots offered by video poker machines and the rapid rate at which they pay out winning combinations. Psychologists have found that people who play slot machines reach a debilitating level of gambling addiction three times as quickly as those who play other casino games.
The first mechanical slot machines were created in the 19th century by two New York-based manufacturers, Sittman and Pitt. Their machines had five reels with a total of 50 symbols, and players won by lining up poker hands. More recently, electronic slots have increased the number of possible symbols and improved the odds of winning by weighting certain symbols over others. However, these changes have not made a significant difference in the prevalence of slot addiction. In addition, people who play online slots tend to become addicted to them much more rapidly than those who play traditional casinos games. This is partly because of the speed at which online slot machines pay out winning combinations.