Video-Game Killing Builds Visual Skills, Researchers Report
I really, really, really, fucking hate the news. Especially the New York Times. Sandra Blakeslee should be shot in the face, and I say that because I’m a rabid gamer freak who’s played one too many “fps’s”, of course!
Not only is this extremely horrible journalism, but the woman seems like she hasn’t got a clue in the first place.
If you get past the first paragraph, and compare it to the AP wire service story on the same topic, they aren’t different.
Even the opening paragraph isn’t all that bad, though my first thought was “I’m a parent, and I’m don’t dread this news”.
But I suppose I’m a wicked game player, so that doesn’t count. :D
But the headline sucks. However, I have to cut the writer a little slack. In many of the publications I’ve written for, including both print and online, I have little control over the headline. I’m sure the NYT writer didn’t, either. Some editor wrote the headline, hoping it would attract eyeballs. I’ve been the victim of this sort of thing, too, and speaking as a writer, it’s damned annoying sometimes.
As ever,
Loyd Case
What are you, wumpus, some sort of twisted Qt3 version of Rainman? It’s like having multiple threads causes you some sort of mental anguish.
“Definitely, definitely more than one thread on this topic. More than one. Definitely. GAHHHHHHH!”
“They said the findings suggest that video games could be used to help visually impaired patients see better or to train soldiers for combat.”
Oh great. Were fucked. Once again a study proves that video games are the combat training simulations that the smarty pants new people always clamied they were.
A hundred and twenty two posts. Yeah. Definitely. A hundred and twenty two posts.
Maybe Jayson Blair should have written this story.
Dr. Gupta, on CNN this morning, did a very even-handed job with this story. He didn’t mention “killing”, “violence”, or “parents dreading the news” and he did mention that 28 is the average age of the “gamer”. The showed footage of MOH:AA’s D-Day level though, a level that really doesn’t require advanced vision to get through. Who ever played the game to get that video was shooting back, which is kinda funny.
You didn’t know that? I know some US Soldiers who play video games to train for improving visually and knowing the battlefield better.
They also play miniature wargames (think Gamesworkshop, only modern and for US military) to develop strategies.
You didn’t know that? I know some US Soldiers who play video games to train for improving visually and knowing the battlefield better.
They also play miniature wargames (think Gamesworkshop, only modern and for US military) to develop strategies.[/quote]
Now that I think about it, I do remember seeing a show where a group of army people were training with a modified version of Doom.
Reading over my post again, I can’t help but notice how it utterly fails to convey the facetious mood I originally had in mind for it. In fact, it makes me sound serious, which is kind of frightening. Where’s the sarcasm indication BBcode when you need it?
Sorry, wumpus. I tried finding the other thread, but I just couldn’t. The evil QT3 fairies are out to get you! They’re twisting my arm into annoying you… to death!
Stick it up your ass, you god damn hypochondriac. I made a mistake. I rarely create topics. It’s essentially a different story. So fuck off.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/1928333
I like this version even better.
Video games help in your
ability to locate the position of a blinking object, count the number of simultaneous objects on a screen and pick out the color of an alphabet letter.
Then you know what? They CAN’T take our games away or we’ll use our hours of video-combat-game training to take over the government!! Why the fuck are we even worried? It’s obvious that if they try anything funny we’ll all go on psychotic rampages of intense video-game withdraw and use our finely honed sense to kill everyone who opposes us.
Or maybe it’s just a convienent scapegoat to keep the finger of blame away from neglectful or overindulgent parents, schools more interested in sports than ‘book learnin’ or government officials sitting in office shoving a cigar up their intern’s whoha.