For decades, lawmakers, researchers, journalists, and parents have worried that video games are bad for us: that they encourage violent behavior or harm mental health. This fear has spilled over into policy decisions that affect millions of people.
The World Health Organization added “gaming disorder” to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) in 2019, while China restricts people under 18 from playing games to more than three hours a week in a bid to prevent minors from becoming addicted.
However, in recent years a growing number of studies have argued that video games are actually good for us, improving cognition, relieving stress, and strengthening communication skills.
The reality, a new study shows, is that we simply don’t have a good grip on how games affect our well-being, if at all, pointing to the complexity of making firm conclusions about how and why playing video games affects us. Read the full story.
How do strong muscles keep your brain healthy?
We often think of muscles as something that exists apart from the intellect. In fact, our brains and muscles are in constant communication with each other, sending electrochemical signals back and forth. In a very real way, our brain health depends on keeping our muscles moving.
Exercise stimulates what scientists call the brain’s “cross-talk,” and protein molecules released when muscles contract help determine specific beneficial responses in the brain. These can include the formation of new neurons and increased synaptic plasticity, both of which enhance learning and memory. Read the full story.
I’ve been combing the internet to find today’s most fun/important/scary/interesting stories about technology.
1 Google marks a father’s medical photo of his son as abusive When Big Tech’s abuse detection tools go wrong, the consequences can be very serious. (NYT$)
2 Software can do better than ‘man’, ‘woman’, and ‘other’ In most cases, only a few simple lines of code are required. (MIT Technology Review)
3 Carbon removal requires a code of conduct Industry has given rise to many wild claims. Codes of ethics can help to govern if they become naughty. (Protocol)+ Seville uses ancient Persian technology to combat climate change. (Bloomberg $)+ Companies hoping to grow carbon-sucking seaweed may outrun science. (MIT Technology Review)
4 Black market abortion pill websites are booming It’s not always clear where the pills come from, or how to use them. (WSJ$)+ Crossing national borders takes its toll on those seeking abortions. (Slate)+ Where to get abortion pills and how to use them. (MIT Technology Review)
5 The NSO Group has a new CEO as part of a larger internal makeover. (FT $)+ The hacking industry is facing the end times. (MIT Technology Review)
6 Big Tech is bracing for a new wave of misinformation ‘big lies’ Critics say their outdated methods of detection and removal will not help protect midterm elections. (WP$)
7 There is no evidence that student behavior apps work, but schools across the US are adopting them anyway. (Udark)+ Software that monitors students during exams perpetuates inequality and violates their privacy. (MIT Technology Review)
8 Prosthetics fail to amputate Well-meaning engineers fail to understand what people really need by losing limbs from their prosthetics. (IEEE Spectrum)
9 In Reddit’s vile nude marketplace In addition to selling images and videos, the community works together to deceive the women who appear in it. (BBC)+ Horrible new AI app turns women into porn videos with one click. (MIT Technology Review)
10 Thai activists are toying with their monarchy Using Despicable Me and Harry Potter tropes. (Foreign Policy$)
“It’s just another thing to keep reminding you to use your phone.”
—Deborah Mackenzie, 23, explained why she wouldn’t join a group of young people using BeReal, an app that encourages authenticity, to The Guardian.
Video games divide South Korea
When American entertainment company Blizzard released StarCraft, a real-time sci-fi strategy game in 1998, it wasn’t just a hit—it was a revival. At that time, South Korea was seen as a technologically backward country rather than a major market. Blizzard didn’t even bother to localize the game into Korean.
Nonetheless, StarCraft — in which players battle each other with armies of warring galactic species — is a resounding success. Of the 11 million copies sold worldwide, 4.5 million were in South Korea.
StarCraft and PC bang culture speak to a generation of young South Koreans beset by economic anxiety and increasing academic pressure. The social aspect of StarCraft sets the stage for another phenomenon: e-sports. Read the full story.
A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these strange times. (Have an idea? Send me a line or tweet.)
+ You hear it first—these are the hottest colors of 2023.+ This story about a seal breaking into a biologist’s house is hilarious.+ This horrifying automatic LinkedIn post generator has kept me entertained for hours.+ How amazing Catherine is Zeta -Jones saw the new Addams Family story Wednesday? + Rhythm Nation Janet Jackson is a very good song, it breaks the laptop.
Is gaming good for mental health?
While a 2019 survey showed that nearly 80% of gamers say video games provide them with mental stimulation, relaxation and stress relief, other gamers, such as dedicated athletes who live and breathe in sports, can often battle intense stress, depression, and anxiety. See the article : How playing video games helped me give up alcohol addiction.
Is playing games good for depression? That may be time well spent, according to a new report, which finds that playing games can help reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety. These games help cultivate feelings of social connectedness, a sense of accomplishment, and emotion regulation skills, among other benefits.
How do video games positively affect mental health?
Specifically, playing videogames has been found to lead to improved mood, reduced emotional disturbance, improved emotion regulation, relaxation, and stress reduction. Importantly, moderate play has been associated with better outcomes than overplaying or underplaying.
Do video games worsen mental health?
One of the biggest negative effects of video games can make it difficult for you to regulate your emotions properly. To see also : Netflix is expanding its push into video games, but few subscribers are playing along. Studies show that people diagnosed with internet gaming disorder are more likely to be aggressive, depressed, and anxious.
Does gaming help with anxiety?
The study, the first study to measure the efficacy of video games in reducing depression and anxiety, also found significant reductions in anxiety, as well as improvements in all aspects of mood, among study subjects who played casual video games. This may interest you : Picture books for children – reviews.
Why do video games make my child angry?
For children, anger problems often stem from an inability to process and express other negative emotions such as fear, shame, frustration, and disappointment. Video games suppress negative emotions, and these emotions explode as anger. Toxic internet culture and underlying mental illness can also be contributors.
How do violent video games affect children’s behavior? Studies of children exposed to violent media have shown that they may become numb to violence, imitate violence, and exhibit more aggressive behavior. Younger children and those with emotional, behavioral or learning problems may be more affected by violent images.
Can video games cause irritability?
Some of the emotional signs or symptoms of video game addiction include: Feelings of restlessness and/or irritability when unable to play. Preoccupation with thoughts about previous online activity or anticipation of the next online session.
Do video games make kids irritable?
Parents often report that they see more irritability in their children after they play video games like Fortnite and Minecraft.
How do video games affect a child’s behavior?
Too many video games can lead to poor social skills, time away from family, school work and other hobbies, lower grades, reading less, exercising less, being overweight, and having aggressive thoughts and behaviors.
Do video games affect intelligence?
On average, children spend 2.5 hours a day watching TV, half an hour on social media, and 1 hour playing video games. The results showed that those who played more games than average improved their intelligence between the two measurements by about 2.5 IQ points more than average.
Are video gamers smarter? “While children who played more video games at age 10 were not on average any more intelligent than children who did not play games, they showed the greatest increase in intelligence after two years, in both boys and girls,” writes Klingberg. and Sauce.
Do video games affect your brain?
Previous research has shown that just 10-20 minutes of playing violent games increases activity in brain regions associated with arousal, anxiety, and emotional reactions, while reducing activity in the frontal lobes associated with emotion regulation and executive control.
Does playing video games affect your IQ?
American children between the ages of 9 and 10 who spent more time playing video games experienced significant improvements in their intelligence scores when retested two years later — an additional 2.5 IQ points above average.
Do video games make you dumber?
Further analysis revealed that time spent playing video games could link the relationship between owning a video-game system and reading and writing scores. These findings suggest that video games can replace after-school academic activities and may inhibit reading and writing development in boys.
