A slot (also spelled “slot” or “slott”) is an opening in the side of an airplane fuselage through which air flows over the upper surface. This is used to control airflow and help the wings achieve high lift and maneuverability.
In the old days, slot machines were all-or-nothing affairs: a player yanked on the lever and either the cherries lined up or they didn’t. Today, computers have allowed casinos to offer more exciting games with much higher jackpots and precise controls over odds and percentage paybacks. That’s why slots became so popular, and so profitable.
Slot is also a term used in hockey to describe the area right in front of the goaltender and between the face-off circles. The high slot is a prime spot for defensemen to take a blistering slap shot. These shots are often taken at speeds over 100 miles per hour, so a well-placed shot from the high slot can be a real game-changer. However, some players have a tendency to abuse the slot and slam it with a stick or other object, and in many cases this can result in a machine being shut down and voiding any credits the player had left. For this reason, slot machines are armor-plated and built with tempered glass, and they’re designed to detect tampering and abuse. If a machine is subjected to such abuse, it will typically display a warning and then immediately shut itself down. It may also eject the offending player from the premises, and in extreme cases, the machine can even alert the local police or security forces to the incident.