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Action games improve 'real-world' skills, researchers suggest
"So what?" you might be thinking, "I don't care about the real world." Hey, we hear you. But! What if you could get those nagging loved ones off your back? A host of new studies could prove an important bargaining chip in convincing your parents, partners and pad-mates that you really should keep playing Black Ops in lieu of other activities, productive or not. NPR reports on a series of brain studies that suggests playing action games can improve one's attention, multitasking ability and vision skills, including spatial reasoning and "contrast sensitivity" -- "a skill that comes in very handy if you're driving in fog," says Daphne Bavelier, a professor of brain and cognitive sciences at the University of Rochester. And get this: Jay Pratt, a psych professor and brain researcher at the University of Toronto, claims his studies have shown that women, who he says typically score worse than men on spatial cognition tests, "improved substantially" after playing action games "and almost caught up to the men's scores." So, if your particular loved one happens to be both concerned and a female, reassure her: Black Ops supports split-screen multiplayer! But, um, before you forward anyone the article, you may want to edit out some parts ... Apparently, just a few weeks of "training" can show lasting effects on your "real-world" skills for up to two years, and all the researchers involved encourage (ugh) "moderation" in playtime. [Thanks, Chris; image credit: J. Adam Fenster/University of Rochester]
Researchers use cameraphones as 3D mice, foresee interactive ads
For what it's worth, marketing firms have been encouraging folks to interact with billboards and the like with their cellphones for some time now, but prototype software developed by gurus in the UK has enabled a cameraphone to control a desktop computer. As expected, the application enables users to "move and manipulate onscreen items simply by waving a handset around in front of a [display]," but giving mobile owners a second-rate 3D mouse is just the beginning. There is promise for it (or something similar) to one day be used in more public settings, but while it's still locked inside the house, we'll probably just continue using our entirely more comfortable Wiimote for any atypical mousing exercises. Hit up the read link for a video demonstration.[Via NewScientist]
