Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminum. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and been prized as a gem and ornamental stone for thousands of years owing to its unique hue. In recent times turquoise, like most other opaque gems, has been devalued by the introduction of treatments, imitations, and synthetics onto the market, some difficult to detect even by experts. The substance has been known by many names, but the word turquoise was derived around 16th century from the French language either from the word for Turkish or dark-blue stone. It does not occur in Turkey but it traded at Turkish bazaars to Venetian merchants who brought it to Europe. The color, however, has been employed extensively in the decorative tiles adorning Turkish places of worship and homes for hundreds of years, beginning with the Seljuk, or was derived from the color of the Mediterranean Sea on the southern Turkish coast and the association quite possibly has caused the name to take root.

California Card Rooms

State law requires that every owner, lessee or employee of a gambling establishment obtain and, thereafter, maintain a valid state gambling license. The Bureau of Gambling Control Bureau investigates the qualifications of individuals who apply for state gambling licenses to determine whether they are suitable and to ensure that gambling is conducted honestly, competitively and free from criminal and corruptive elements.
Gambling License

An owner of a gambling establishment must apply for and obtain a valid state gambling license from the Bureau and the California Gambling Control Commission. The Bureau's Licensing staff will conduct in-depth background investigations on applicants to determine whether they are suitable to hold a state gambling license. Suitability is determined by a number of factors including but not limited to the applicant's honesty, integrity, general character, reputation, habits, and financial and criminal history.
Additional Tables

The owner of a state-licensed gambling establishment who wishes to operate additional tables on a temporary or permanent basis must submit a request to operate additional tables to the Commission. The number of tables requested cannot exceed the total number of tables authorized under local and state law for the gambling establishment.
Game/Gaming Activity Approval

All controlled games pai-gow, poker, etc. and gaming activities jackpots, bonuses, tournaments, etc. must be approved by the Bureau and must comply with local gaming ordinances prior to their play at a licensed gambling establishment within California.

Compulsive Gambling

Many people enjoy gambling, whether it's betting on a horse or playing poker on the Internet. Most people who gamble don't have a problem, but some lose control of their gambling. Signs of problem gambling include

Always thinking about gambling
Lying about gambling
Spending work or family time gambling
Feeling bad after you gamble, but not quitting
Gambling with money you need for other things

Many people can control their compulsive gambling with medicines and therapy. Support groups can also help.
Gambling addiction, also known as compulsive gambling, is a type of impulse-control disorder. Compulsive gamblers can’t control the impulse to gamble, even when they know their gambling is hurting themselves or their loved ones. Gambling is all they can think about and all they want to do, no matter the consequences. Compulsive gamblers keep gambling whether they’re up or down, broke or flush, happy or depressed. Even when they know the odds are against them, even when they can’t afford to lose, people with a gambling addiction can’t “stay off the bet.”

Chips Poker

Poker chips are fabricated with complicated graphics and edge spot patterns intending to make them difficult to counterfeit. The process used to make these poker chips is a trade secret and expensive - typically done on high pressure compression molding machines. The typical material of construction for poker chips is not clay as is sometimes believed, but a ceramic material with clay added for texture and weight. The breakable, clay poker chips of the 1960s and 1970s are no longer manufactured. The clay composition of modern chips varies by manufacturer, and is typically very slight (1-10%).

Casino poker chips are special tokens representing a fixed amount of money. The chips used in American Casinos generally weigh 10 grams each. The chips sold for home use vary much more, depending on manufacturer and construction.