attention-deficit disorder
Latest
Quotient system electronically diagnoses ADHD, oh look a bunny
Cubicles are the site of many of the worst cases of adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), so it's perhaps a bit ironic that Quotient's ADHD System looks an awful lot like a cubicle on wheels. It's an automated machine that presents a series of games and challenges for a user to participate in, all while watching that user with a pair of cameras -- one up top to monitor head movement and one below to look for a bouncing leg. We think the same could be done far cheaper with a webcam and a Yurex leg odometer, but the FDA has recently seen fit to clear parent company BioBehavioral Diagnostics to start marketing this thing, so look for these to crop up in every elementary school faster than a twitchy kid can say Ritalin.
Iowa State study links gaming to -- over there, check it out!
If we can stay focused on this post for just a minute, we'll tell you all about a recent Iowa State University study that concluded -- hey, how 'bout all that commotion over Demon's Souls ... crazy, right? So anyway, this study claims there's a correlation between spending a lot of time gaming and ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder). The study, appearing in the latest issue of Psychophysiology, determined brain wave responses to both proactive (i.e., "attack the monster") and reactive (i.e., "dodge the monster's attack") activities. By the way, have you been following the buzz around Uncharted 2? The game's awesome! Oh right, so ... The ISU researcher (not this one) found that test subjects playing games for four-plus hours a day showed "significantly diminished" attention levels to proactive activities. Though you're welcome to draw your own conclusions, you little scientists, this deficiency is alleged to -- cue scientific blabber: "reveal a reduction in brain activity and disruption of behavior associated with sustained attention ability." It's possible you'd have a mess of outraged questions at this point, but let's be honest: you didn't read the whole post, did you? [Image credit: MarsDD]
