Insurance is an asset purchased by individuals and organizations to protect them from loss and provide them with a way to reduce the risk of exposure to possible injury or loss. There are three classifications of RISK�personal risk, property risk, and LIABILITY risk�and it is possible to be insured against all three types. Personal risk entails the loss of INCOME and/or ASSETS because the individual or organization can no longer work or operate. Property risk entails the loss of property (i.e., anything that an individual or organization owns). Liability risk entails the loss of assets or income due to an individual�s or organization�s NEGLIGENCE, as determined by law. Insurance transfers an individual�s or an organization�s risk to the insurer. Insurance has been practiced in one form or another for thousands of years. In ancient Babylonian society, it was common for merchants to purchase bottomry CONTRACTS, or LOANS that did not have to be repaid if the purchased merchandise did not make it to its final destination. This evolved into a more sophisticated marine (shipping) insurance system. Modern marine insurance was introduced in Italy during the 13th century, when banks and merchants formed syndicates to protect themselves from shipping losses. In the 18th century a former coffeehouse named Lloyds developed into a major marine insurance group, and London developed into a center for marine insurance. The 18th century also introduced other types of insurance, including life, fire, and casualty insurance. The astronomer Edmond Halley made life insurance possible with the development of the first mortality table in 1683. The first insurance company in the United States was the Philadelphia Contribution, formed by Benjamin Franklin in 1752. The 1820s saw enormous growth in the insurance industry in the United States. Today insurance is an international business dominated by huge companies. In the United States there are several thousand insurance companies employing millions of people. The insurance business uses statistical probabilities, usually in the form of actuarial tables, to determine if something or someone is insurable and to set premiums. The larger the number of individuals or organizations insured, the easier it is to set a reasonable premium. Higher premiums are assigned when an insurance company deems someone or something to be a larger risk. Some insurance companies then reinvest this premium money in revenue-producing projects, and for this reason some of the United States� largest institutional investors are insurance companies. The McCarron-Ferguson Act (1945) left the regulation of U.S. insurance companies to the individual state, and for this reason insurance regulation is not as uniform as that in other industries. The McCarron-Ferguson Act affects Title 15, Chapter 20 (Regulation of Insurance) of the U.S. Code. It states that �the business of insurance, and every person engaged therein, shall be subject to the laws of the several States which relate to the regulation or taxation of such business� (U.S. Code Title 15, sec. 1012a). Some uniformity in state regulation does exist, however, due primarily to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which works toward creating a uniform standard. There are various types of insurance to protect against the three types of risk. To protect against personal risk, there is life insurance and health insurance, both of which most closely resemble the insurance model described above. Large groups of people contribute to a fund, and if an individual in that group is injured, gets sick, or dies, monetary relief is provided to him, her, or his/her beneficiaries. Homeowners and commercial insurance are two types of protection against property risk, providing monetary relief if an individual or organization suffers accidental property loss; these types include fire and flood insurance. In many cases creditors require an individual or organization is required to obtain property insurance. Liability insurance entails several types of insurance, including automobile, theft, and aviation, all of which may be legally required and will compensate others if personal negligence leads to their injury or loss. WORKERS� COMPENSATION is an additional type of liability insurance that protects employers from monetary loss in case of employee injury; it is mandatory for all employers to have workers� compensation insurance for all employees. Credit insurance and title insurance are two additional types of liability insurance that protect individuals and organizations from financial loss due to the negligence of others. There is an additional type of insurance called �surety ship� that protects companies from losses due to their employees� dishonesty. Athletes� bodies, musicians� hands, and even weather for outdoor events are some examples of things that are currently being insured. As computers allow for the more accurate computation of risk, it will become possible for insurers to develop policies for almost anything.