Excellent Gaming Leading to Excellent Grades

Video games have become an extremely popular entertainment medium.  While their focus should remain on entertainment, video games should also emphasis learning while having fun.  The amount of information people retain from playing games is amazing.  This is partly due to games unique nature, they engage sight, sounds and feel while allowing the user to read, interact and see immediate applications.  The other part, and probably the more important, is they enjoy the game so they strive to remember all they can. Games give players an opportunity to be exposed to thoughts, ideas, and beliefs they otherwise may not encounter.  This passion that players have towards games can assist them in their learning pursuits.  Games can be applicable practice for real life.

A recent study shows that 91% of children in American play video games (cnet.com).  Games should not only aim to entertain, they should teach.  An example would be "Rock Band".  The game is played by pretending to drum.  The player taps the correct drum head at the correct time to earn points.  The game is very entertaining and can be enjoyed for hours on end.  I mention "Rock Band" because a friend growing up loved to play "Rock Band" and the practice he gained from playing carried over into real life!  He was able to learn the real drums at an alarmingly accelerated rate.  When asked how he was able to learn so well in such a short period of time he attributed it to his time spent playing "Rock Band".  Image that while playing engaging  AAA titles like "Call of Duty", "Mass Effect" or "Assassins Creed" that you were also learning, almost unbeknownst, programming, chemistry, and american history.  Games can become a powerful resource for creating a platform for life long learning.

Current efforts to incorporate learning into games have produced titles like "JumpStart" or "Reader Rabbit".  These games aren't sufficient.  They don't make a strong attempt to make learning fun, simply having an animated moose hand out additional homework, won't work.  We need titles that people will be excited to play during their free time.  I am a fan of the mass effect series.  There are many activities players can engage in.  They can hack, slice, engineer or administer first aid.  What if these mini games actively taught the player the basics of these disciplines?  If a player chose first aid, they'll learn how to safely remove debris from wounds, apply pressure to stop bleeding, and know that bandages should not be removed. When people play games and they find they have an affinity towards healing they can then consider a career in the medical field.  When they start taking classes to become a EMT, nurse or doctor they'll find they already have a solid understanding of the fundamentals.

Learn More: The Warcraft Civilization: Social Science in a Virtual World

World War OS

Linux, considered by some to be the holy grail of OS.  However if you ask you next door neighbor if they have Linux installed on their computer, would they even know what Linux is?  Why is it that this free software, that is far superior to Windows or Mac, is not a common household name?  The free software movement was initiated by programmers who wanted freedom.  They created a culture of editing and sharing their source code.  However revolutionary this concept may be, the general public does not fit those parameters.  Linux will never dominated the industry because they aren't in the business of spoon feeding their customers.  This is probably intentional, but the very thing that sets them apart is what holds them back from being the biggest name in operating systems.

Cortana: Only Girl in Computer Science

Female representation in computer science is low.  This has nothing to do with a female's ability to program.  In fact the opposite is true.  Studies show that females have an increased ability to multitask, seeing the big picture, and making complicated connections.  Why is it then that female enrollment in computer science has decreased over the past decade?  Simply, women don't want to.  Pressures from society say computer science is geeky and for nerds.  However if females just tried computer science they would find a love for programming.  The issue is there are no outward forces to draw females into computer science.  The connection between computer science and nerdy boys is too strong.  Girls don't see the field as appealing.  We need to help not just women but all people see computer science as the creative and innovative field that it is.

Patent Frenzy

In a general sense the patent system is effective.  One could only imagine how devastating it would be if their invention was ripped off and big business made millions off their brilliant idea.  The problem is when some people file myriad of patents in the hope of cashing in on them later.  These people are called trolls and they hinders the progress of humanity.  Inventors are often stopped or dissuaded from pursuing ventures because of patent litigations which hinder their progress.  The patent system needs to be reworked.  First, holding the patent should require a yearly fee.  This will discourage people from simply sitting on patents with no intent to use them.  Second, which corresponds with the first, The duration needs to be shortened.  Patents need to enter the public domain much quicker, freeing up the entrepreneurial field to new ventures and possibilities.

A New Age & Way To Share The Gospel

In recent General Conferences we have heard the prophets and apostles iterate and reiterate the importance of the internet in connection to the spreading of the gospel.  Prophecies have repeatedly stated that the gospel will reach the "...four quarters of the earth," (D&C 33:6).  However, current trends look down on people sharing their opinions over social media.  We sometimes hear of people griping whenever a political or religious opinion is post on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.  Mormon.org offers a creative and effective way of allowing members to freely share their religious beliefs in a setting where it is not only socially acceptable but encouraged.  All members need to create a mormon.org profile.  They then need to link to it from their other social media accounts.  This is a far more effective way of sharing our beliefs with our non-member friends.  They won't feel like its be shoved in their face.  When they do view our profile though, it will be their choice and they will eagerly seek our opinion.