A narrow depression, notch, groove, or opening, especially one for receiving something, as a keyway in a piece of machinery, a slit for a coin on a vending machine, etc. Also used figuratively to refer to a position or time in a schedule or sequence: The program got a slot in the broadcasting schedule.
On a casino slot machine, players insert cash or, in “ticket-in, ticket-out” machines, paper tickets with barcodes, into the machine’s slots. Then they activate the machine by pushing a lever or button (physical or virtual, on a computer touchscreen). A reel or series of reels spin and stop to rearrange symbols. If the symbols match a pay table, the player receives credits according to that table. Classic symbols include fruits, bells, and stylized lucky sevens. Many slot games have a theme, and the game’s symbols and overall design reflect that theme.
Unlike other psychophysiological measures of reward reactivity, which use cumbersome electrodes to measure brain activity, the researchers’ measurements of PRPs and slot vigilance are noninvasive and rely on self-reporting by players. The authors suggest that these low-cost methods could be useful in the study of gambling behavior, including why some people enjoy playing slots despite their negative emotional and economic costs. Their findings may also help explain why the popularity of these games has been on the rise: The game’s continuous nature and attention-capturing rewards appear to distract players from thinking about their problems and bolster a sense of control.