3D Monitor from iZ3D, Designed for Games

I haven't set eyes on this 3D monitor by iZ3D. I'd love to give it a try soon!

Here is the news release:
3D Monitor has gone Mainstream- Sets Price for Wide Holiday Distribution: iZ3D has taken a bold move to make 3D mainstream this Christmas (pdf)
World's First 3D Monitor for Gamers Now Available in Retail Stores pdf

More Info:
The iZ3D 3D monitor solution includes:
- 22-inch wide screen 3D/2D keyboard switchable LCD monitor
- 3 pairs of passive polarized 3D glasses (5 other models are available online)
- iZ3D Stereoscopic 3D and Anaglyph 3D software drivers (other drivers are available
online)
- Power and video cables
- Quick-start guide
- Free membership into iZ3D’s upcoming 3D gaming network
-$399.00

Monitor specifications are:
- 22-inch wide screen LCD
- 1680 x 1050 resolution
- Up to 170-degree 3D viewing angle
- 5ms response time
- 700:1 contrast ratio
- 16.7-million colors
- 300 nits

Supports 64-Bit Windows OS

"The iZ3D 22-inch monitor has a new manufacturers suggested resale price of $399.00 and is currently available at Fry’s and Micro Centers as well as online stores including www.staples.com, www.newegg.com, www.amazon.com, www.pcmall.com, www.criticalbuy.com, www.iz3d.com, and other online shopping sites."

Supported Games
User Submitted List
Detailed whitepaper

If you've had a chance to play a game or two using this 3D system, please let me know your thoughts.

Videogames, Teens, and.... Civic Education?

Videogames have become a serious target for study by researchers. If youhaven't played a video game in years, you might be surprised at the results of a recent study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and the Civic Engagement Research Group at Mills College.

Major New Study Shatters Stereotype of Teens and Video Games: Game playing is universal, diverse, often involves social interaction, and can cultivate teen civic engagement
- MacArthur Foundation

From the above article:

"A focus of the survey was the relationship between gaming and civic experiences among teens. The goal was to test concerns that gaming might be prompting teens to withdraw from their communities. It turns out there is clear evidence that gaming is not just an entertaining diversion for many teens; gaming can be tied to civic and political engagement. Indeed, youth have many experiences playing games that mirror aspects of civic and political life, such as thinking about moral and ethical issues and making decisions about city and/or community affairs. Not only do many teens help others or learn about a problem in society during their game playing, they also encounter other social and civic experiences:

• 52% of gamers report playing games where they think about moral and ethical issues.
  
• 43% report playing games where they help make decisions about how a community, city or nation should be run.
  
• 40% report playing games where they learn about a social issue. "

"Moreover, the survey indicates that youth who have these kinds of civic gaming experiences are more likely to be civically engaged in the offline world. They are more likely than others are to go online to get information about current events, to try to persuade others how to vote in an election, to say they are committed to civic participation, and to raise money for charity."

Teens, Video Games, and Civics pdf
-Pew Internet & American Life

The Civic Potential of Video Games pdf

I'll post more later!

Lazybrains 3D game: Another Brain-Computer Interface!

I came across an article about the BCI (Brain-Computer Interface) 3D game, Lazybrains, on the Wired website today. "Brain Scanners, Fingercams Take Computer Interfaces Beyond Multitouch"

LazyBrains was a Digital Media Senior Project of Aaron Bohenick, James Borden, Sachary Brooks, Kenneth Oum, and Jordan Santell, students at Drexel University.

Here is a video:

Game Teaser


Description of the BCI, a fNIR:

• "The Functional Near-Infrared Imaging Device (fNIR) is a technology that was developed at the University of Pennsylvania, but is currently being used by the Drexel University biomedical department. The device shines infrared light into the user's forehead, and records the amount of light that gets transmitted back. The change in the amount of light can be used to deduce information about the amount of oxygen in the blood. When the user concentrates, their frontal lobe needs more oxygen and this change can be detected by the device."

For more information, see the Voxel6 website.


Here is a link to a post about a similar BCI system:
Emotive System's Neural Game Controller Headset: Human-Computer Interface of the Future?

It will be interesting to see how this technology unfolds. In my opinion, it will be quite useful for cognitive rehabilitation, as well as providing access to games for people who have significant physical limitations.

Game Based Learning: Second European Conference

The 2008 Second European Conference on Game-Based Learning will be held in Barcelona, Spain, October 16-17, hosted by the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya.

Speaker Bios

Conference Program

If you are working in a K-12 setting and interested in sharing your ideas about game-based learning, please leave me a message. I'm especially interested in how interactive games support engaged, meaningful learning.

Mind Habits Update

I previously had a demo of one of the interactive games from MindHabits on this blog, but it no longer is available. The newer MindHabits on-line demo includes several games.

From the MindHabits website:

"Montreal-based MindHabits develops science-based videogames designed to help players reduce stress and build self-confidence. Founded on social intelligence research by Dr. Mark Baldwin at McGill University, these stress busting, confidence boosting games use simple, fun-to-play exercises that help players develop and maintain a more positive state of mind."

MindHabits allows you to adjust the faces that you see on the screen:

"Click the “Game Options” button and try moving the “neighbourhood” slider back and forth until you find a mix of faces that matches where you live as closely as possible."

Here is a screen shot of one of the MindHabits games:

The MindHabits games are evidenced-based:

Stephane D. Dandeneau, Mark W. Baldwin, Jodene R. Baccus, and Maya Sakellaropoulo, Jens C. Pruessner (2007), Cutting Stress Off at the Pass: Reducing Vigilance and Responsiveness to Social Threat by Manipulation of Attention (pdf) Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2007, Vol. 93, No. 4, 651–666 American Psychological Association 0022-3514/07/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.93.4.651

Link to a great post about serious games and virtual reality in business

Elaine Alhadeff's Future-Making Serious Games blog has a wealth of interesting information for people interested in how interactive multimedia technology can impact the present- and the future. Take the time to visit her blog and take a look!

Here is a slice from one of her latest posts:

Via: daytaOhio - Barco and daytaOhio Equipped Collaborative Visualization Complex at Wright State’s Joshi Research Center
"Barco, a leading global provider of visual display systems, has partnered with daytaOhio to implement the industry’s most advanced virtual collaboration and visualization complex at Wright State University’s Joshi Research Center. "

It is exciting to learn about the growth in collaborative visualization! The businessmen below seem to be enjoying the experience:

For more interesting ideas, look at Eliane's archived posts about serious games.

Nobelprize.org's Educational Outreach: Multimedia Games, Experiments and Simulated Environments

I recently came across the Nobelprize.org website when I was searching for interactive learning games suitable for use on interactive whiteboards or large touch-screen displays.

For those of you who follow my blog, you'll know that I periodically look for engaging visual and multimedia activities that have potential for use in classrooms where Universal Design for Learning is practiced. Visual and multimedia forms of knowledge representation can help to reach a wide range of people, including those who have reading difficulties, language-based learning disabilities, auditory attention and memory deficits, or have autism spectrum disorders (Asperger syndrome, autism, etc.).

If you are an educator who is interested in using games in your classroom, the resources from Nobelprize.org are a good start, since background information is provided for each game.

Direct links to the games and information pages are listed below.

Info from the website:

"Nobelprize.org has a unique way of introducing the Nobel Prize that goes beyond the mere presentation of facts. These introductions, aptly called 'educational', are made in the form of games, experiments, and simulated environments ready to be explored and discovered. The productions are aimed at the young, particularly the 14-18 age groups, who may know about the Nobel Prizes and the Nobel Laureates, but often lack a deeper understanding about the Nobel Prize-awarded works."

"These educational productions do not require previous knowledge. A central thought or issue is explored during 10-20 minutes of activity, using a specific Nobel Prize-awarded work as a springboard for the whole exercise."

"The productions offer an excellent way of using the Internet for homework, or just plain, wholesome entertainment. The high level of interactivity and the sophisticated illustrations ensure an enriching time spent in front of the computer."

Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Heating Plastics Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/chemistry/plastics/game/index.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/chemistry/plastics/index.html

What is Chirality?
http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/2001/illpres/game.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/chemistry/chiral/index.html

Conductive Polymers- Conductive Valley Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/chemistry/conductive_polymers/game/index.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/chemistry/conductive_polymers/index.html

Nobel Prize in Medicine

The Blood Typing Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/landsteiner/landsteiner.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/landsteiner/index.html

The Ear Pages
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/ear/game/index.html
Background Information and Directions:
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/ear/index.html

The Immune System Defender Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/immunity/game/index.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/immunity/index.html

Nobel Prize in Physics

The Metal Chef Show Game:
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/steel/Steel1920.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/

Laser Challenge Game:
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/laser/challenge.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/laser/index.html

The Recycler Game: Learn about Transistors
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/transistor/recycler/index.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/physics/transistor/index.html

Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences

Trade Ruler Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/economics/trade/game/ruler.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/economics/

Nobel Peace Prize

The Peace Dove Game:
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/nuclear_weapons/game.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/nuclear_weapons/index.html

The Red Cross Movement: Prisoners of War Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/redcross/game.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/redcross/index.html

Interactive Conflict Map
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/conflictmap/conflictmap.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/peace/conflictmap/index.html

Nobel Prize in Literature

Lord of the Flies Game
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/literature/golding/lof.html
Background Information and Directions
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/literature/golding/index.html

Microsoft UK: "ThinSight" Multi-touch Technology on a Laptop

(Photos from New Scientist)

Tom Simonite's article in a recentNewScientist article reviews a prototype for a touch-screen lap-top using "ThinSight", developed by Microsoft Research. Other companies are researching similar systems.

Multi-touch screens and surfaces support the work of people who increasingly rely on visualization or interactive multimedia to do their jobs. In addition, 3D multi-touch applications created for laptops and tablet PC's might be good for education, training simulations, and serious games.

Detailed post about NextWindow on the Future-Making Serious Games Blog

Elaine Alhadeff's has an extensive post about the various uses for NextWindow touch-screen displays on her Future-Making Serious Games blog. Take a look!