Prospects and Strategies of Gaming Ventures in China

This paper analyzes the prospects of gaming ventures in China and discusses the strategies for Western investors. A strong demand for gambling, changing government attitudes, increased wealth and leisure, and a fairly established foundation of tourism have created a favorable climate for gaming ventures in China. The major risks are political instability, policy inconsistency, and inflation. To develop gaming projects in China, Western gaming investors need to choose the right regions and build casinos different from those in Las Vegas. At the current stage, active involvement with a small amount of capital is recommended

Financial Competitiveness of Macau in Comparison with Other Gaming Destinations

This paper analyzes the financial competitiveness of the Macau gaming industry visa- vis its counterparts in North America and Europe. The analysis covers casino product structure, revenue composition, assets productivity and financial returns of Macau versus those of gaming destinations in North America and Europe. The findings reveal that while Macau is advantageously positioned in terms of assets productivity and financial returns, its casino product structure and revenue composition seem at odds with today\u27s gaming trend. Macau is facing challenges from emerging competitors in Asia. To maintain a stable gaming revenue growth and retain its competitiveness, Macau must modify its casino product structure and revenue composition. Pursuing a more diversified market is a critical step towards the goal

Vortex-line condensation in three dimensions: A physical mechanism for bosonic topological insulators

Bosonic topological insulators (BTI) in three dimensions are symmetry-protected topological phases (SPT) protected by time-reversal and boson number conservation {symmetries}. BTI in three dimensions were first proposed and classified by the group cohomology theory which suggests two distinct root states, each carrying a $\mathbb{Z}_2$ index. Soon after, surface anomalous topological orders were proposed to identify different root states of BTI, which even leads to a new BTI root state beyond the group cohomology classification. In this paper, we propose a universal physical mechanism via \textit{vortex-line condensation} {from} a 3d superfluid to achieve all {three} root states. It naturally produces bulk topological quantum field theory (TQFT) description for each root state. Topologically ordered states on the surface are \textit{rigorously} derived by placing TQFT on an open manifold, which allows us to explicitly demonstrate the bulk-boundary correspondence. Finally, we generalize the mechanism to $Z_N$ symmetries and discuss potential SPT phases beyond the group cohomology classification.Comment: ReVTeX 4.1 (published version

A universal form for quark and neutrino mass matrices

We propose a universal form for quark and lepton mass matrices, which applies in a ``leading order'' approximation where $CP$-violating phases are ignored. Down-quark mass ratios are successfully predicted in our scheme using the measured CKM mixing angles as input. Assuming an additional discrete symmetry in the neutrino sector, we obtain the ``golden ratio'' pattern in the leading-order PMNS mixing matrix; in addition we predict an inverted neutrino mass hierarchy with $m_1\simeq m_2 \simeq74 meV$, $m_3\simeq 55 meV$, and neutrinoless double beta decay mass parameter $m_{0\nu\beta\beta}\simeq 33~ meV$. We also predict that the $CP$-violating angle in the neutrino sector is close to the maximal value $\delta=\pm\pi/2$, and that the diagonal phases in the PMNS matrix are $\alpha_1\simeq 0$, $\alpha_2\simeq\pi$.Comment: 4.5 pages, 2 figures, added references, added more discussions for $\theta_{13}$ angl