increase gambling. The Hilton in Las Vegas even went so far as to release a scent called "Odorant 1", produced by Alan Hirsch, a Chicago neurologist. This scent made the air smell "fresher", in a slot machine pit. These slot machines saw 45% more action than usual.20 Why do these casinos want each person in their casino to stay longer, and to bet more money? Because the odds are in favor of the house, and the more money gambled, the more the house will make. CEO and President of Claridge's Casino in Atlantic City, Bob Renneissen, said, "Our goal is not to get more out of a customer in three hours but to get him to stay for four hours."21 In lotteries and horse racing the house earns the same percentage from the wagers, no matter what the outcome is. This fact ensures that more money is wagered the more money is made. In casino's, each game has a certain percentage of winning. Sports books get 10%, craps gets .6-1.4%, roulette gets 5.2%, blackjack receives 2-15%, and keno gets a whopping 20%. In 1980, a math genius named Jess Marcum calculated that a craps player who made just a one dollar bet every bet for two months straight would have a one in two trillion chance of winning $1000 before losing $1000. In contrast, if that person only plays for 25 minutes and bets $200 every time, they would increase their odds to 1.15 to 1.22 Basically, the longer the gambler stays, the more money the house will take in. The casinos of today do not need blatant fraud and corruption, like their predecessors, to make large sums of money. ...
