A casino (also known as a gaming house or a gambling house) is an establishment for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shops and other tourist attractions. In the United States, casinos are usually located in cities that are primarily known for tourism or have a large number of residents who enjoy gambling. Many of these casinos offer multiple forms of gambling, including table games, slot machines, and poker rooms. Some even have sports betting sections where people can place bets on various sporting events.
Gambling has been a part of human culture for millennia. There is evidence of dice play in 2300 BC China, and card games were developed in the 1400s. Modern casinos, which are often called gambling houses or clubs, are highly regulated and have strict rules about behavior and play. Some are built around a single game, such as poker, while others focus on a variety of table games.
Because of the large amounts of money handled within a casino, both patrons and staff may be tempted to cheat or steal, either in collusion or independently; therefore security is a major concern for these facilities. The most basic measure is a physical security force, and most casinos also have specialized surveillance departments that operate closed circuit television (CCTV) systems.
Some of the largest casinos in the world are located in Las Vegas, Nevada; however, some of them are spread throughout the country and internationally as well. Some American Indian reservations have casinos, which are not subject to state antigambling laws. In the 1990s, technology has greatly improved the monitoring of casino operations. For example, betting chips have built-in microcircuitry to allow them to be tracked minute-by-minute; roulette wheels are electronically monitored regularly for statistical deviations.