VLT gambling

I would like to immerse myself in the subculture of vlt's in Butte, as there are vlt's in every gas station and are easily the most popular builings in all of Butte. Being from Salmon Arm, there are not many VLT facilities present. So I have never really been involved with VLT gambling. I have also never participated in VLT gambling while I have lived in Butte so I have never understood why people do it. It has become so popular that it has replaced many traditional styles of gambling. It is very maintenance friendly, requires nobody to run it and it makes a tonne of money. I've heard of stories where people get so addicted to these things that they will not remove themselves from a machine for hours and they'll just sit there plugging in the 20's. It seems like a huge waste to me and I can't understand the psychological aspect in it I would just like to better understand why somebody might participate in such a thing. But as it stands right now, for me there is a reason that those lights are flashing and the people that own the machines probably aren't paying for it. I'll start this research project by just asking people that I see playing if they are having any luck. I know this can be a touchy subject for people and I don't want to step on any toes I would just like to learn a lot more about one of the most popular styles of gambling in the United States today. And probably one of the largest cash cow's in the US today.