Enhancing the control of force in putting by video game training

Even if golf video games provide no proprioceptive afferences on actual putting movement, they may give sufficient substitutive visual cues to enhance force control in this skill. It was hypothesized that this usefulness requires, however, two conditions: the video game must provide reliable demonstrations of actual putts, and the user must want to use the game to make progress in actual putting. Accordingly, a video game was selected on the basis of its fidelity to the real-world game. It allowed two different methods of adjusting the virtual player's putting force in order to hole a putt: an analogue method that consisted of focusing on the virtual player's movement and a symbolic method that consisted of focusing on the movement of a gauge on a scale representing the virtual player's putting force. The participants had to use one of these methods with either the intention of making progress in actual putting or in a second condition to simply enjoy the game. Results showed a positive transfer of video playing to actual putting skill for the learning group and also, to a lesser degree, for the enjoyment group; but only when they used the symbolic method. Results are discussed in the context of how vision may convey force cues in sports video games.     

The effects of gender,flow and video game experience on combat identification training

Abstract

The present study examined the effects of gender, video game experience (VGE), and flow state on multiple indices of combat identification (CID) performance. Individuals were trained on six combat vehicles in a simulation, presented through either a stereoscopic or non-stereoscopic display. Participants then reported flow state, VGE and were tested on their ability to discriminate friend vs. foe and identify both pictures and videos of the trained vehicles. The effect of stereoscopy was not significant. There was an effect of gender across three dependent measures. For the two picture-based measures, the effect of gender was mediated by VGE. Additionally, the effect of gender was moderated by flow state on the identification measures. Overall, the study suggests that gender differences may be overcome by VGE and by achieving flow state. Selection based on these individual differences may be useful for future military simulation.

Practitioner Summary: This work investigates the effect of gender, VGE and flow state on CID performance. For three measures of performance, there was a main effect of gender. Gender was mediated by previous VGE on two measures, and gender was moderated by flow state on two measures.     

Classification trees and decision-analytic feedforward control: a case study from the video game industry

The objective of this paper is to use a challenging real-world problem to illustrate how a probabilistic predictive model can provide the foundation for decision-analytic feedforward control. Commercial data mining software and sales data from a market research firm are used to create a predictive model of market success in the video game industry. A procedure is then described for transforming the classification trees into a decision-analytic model that can be solved to produce a value-maximizing game development policy. The video game example shows how the compact predictive models created by data mining algorithms can help to make decision-analytic feedforward control feasible, even for large, complex problems. However, the example also highlights the bounds placed on the practicality of the approach due to combinatorial explosions in the number of contingencies that have to be modeled. We show, for example, how the “option value” of sequels creates complexity that is effectively impossible to address using conventional decision analysis tools.     

Learning rules of a card game from video

This paper presents a framework for automatically learning rules of a simple game of cards using data from a vision system observing the game being played. Incremental learning of object and protocol models from video, for use by an artificial cognitive agent, is presented. iLearn??a novel algorithm for inducing univariate decision trees for symbolic datasets is introduced. iLearn builds the decision tree in an incremental way allowing automatic learning of rules of the game.     

Gender and player characteristics in video game play of preadolescents

The present study explores the relation among different characteristics of preadolescents and their video game habits and preferences. Specifically, the predictive power of age, gender, and psychological adjustment on time spent playing video games and game preference was explored. Children ages 10–15 were given two surveys: a video game habits survey and the BASC-II self-report assessment of personality. Results confirm previous findings of significant gender differences in both time spent playing video games and game type preference. For preadolescents, males were found to spend more time overall playing video games, but for both males and females time spent playing increased with age. No relation was found between time spent playing video games and negative psychological adjustment, as assessed by the BASC-II. Game type preference was predicted by several psychological characteristics. For example, females’ positive feelings about the self were associated with increased likelihood of electing First Person Shooters as a favored game type, and males’ internalizing difficulties were associated with decreased likelihood of electing Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs). The current findings confirm previous results with preadolescents, an under-studied age group, and lend novel insight into the psychological processes that contribute to video game preference.     

Usability perception of different video game devices in elderly users

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usability perception of seniors on video game use with different control devices. Twenty-four seniors participated in the study (12 women, 12 men, 69 years old in average) and eight children (8 years old in average). The setting included the use of two Kinect motion sensors, three computers, three projectors, three video cameras, two audio devices, the Angry Birds and Happy Sky videogames, one Xbox 360 console, a Nintendo Wii device and a Touchscreen configured so that participants could play the games in senior–child pairs. Data were collected according to user friendliness, experience and social interaction. This study suggests that video game control devices for seniors should be adapted to compensate for their function, sensor and cognitive limitations.     

The effect of action video game experience on task-switching

There is now a substantial body of work demonstrating that action video game experience results in enhancements in a wide variety of perceptual skills. More recently, several groups have also demonstrated improvements in abilities that are more cognitive in nature, in particular, the ability to efficiently switch between tasks. In a series of four experiments, we add to this body of work, demonstrating that the action video game player advantage is not exclusively due to an ability to map manual responses onto arbitrary buttons, but rather generalizes to vocal responses, is not restricted to tasks that are perceptual in nature (e.g. respond to a physical dimension of the stimulus such as its color), but generalizes to more cognitive tasks (e.g. is a number odd or even), and is present whether the switch requires a goal-switch or only a motor switch. Finally, a training study establishes that the relationship between the reduction in switch cost and action game playing is causal.     

Evaluation of an electronic video game for improvement of balance

Virtual environments have been investigated for fitness and medical rehabilitation. In this study, the Sony EyeToy ^? and PlayStation 2 ^? were used with the AntiGrav? game to evaluate their potential for improving postural balance. The game required lateral head, body, and arm movements. The performance on balance tests of subjects who trained for 3?weeks with this game was compared to the performance of controls who were not trained. Training subjects showed improvement for two of the three tests (each testing a different facet of balance), suggesting specificity of training, while control subjects did not show significant improvement on any test. Simulator sickness questionnaire results showed a variety of mild symptoms, which decreased over the training sessions. Motor learning analysis of the game scores showed that mastery had been achieved on the easier level in the game, but not on the second level of difficulty. This reflects the potential for continued learning and training through advanced levels within a game. A model parameter using the time constants of game score improvement was developed, which could be used to quantify the difficulty for any video game design. The results suggest that this video game could be used for some aspects of balance training.     

The influence of violent video game enjoyment on hostile attributions

Although catharsis theory as applied to violent media has been repeatedly refuted in the literature, scholars have recently proposed methods by which a cognitive form of catharsis might occur for people who utilize games to manage negative affect. Drawing on these ideas, the current study tests how video games are used to manage feelings of frustration and boost one’s sense of competency. It also explores how these emotional processes influence game enjoyment and hostile attribution bias (HAB). We frustrated half of 82 participants prior to randomizing them to play a violent or nonviolent game. Our results showed that frustrated participants were motivated to progress farther in a video game. This in-game performance decreased their feelings of frustration, boosted their sense of competency, and increased their enjoyment of the game. However, for those who played a violent game, this enjoyment predicted hostile attributions: high enjoyment of violence increased HAB, while low enjoyment of violence decreased HAB. These findings have implications for how video games are used to manage negative feelings.     

视频监控联网中的H.264传输关键技术研究

以视频监控联网系统中视频流的有效互联互通为目的,研究了视频传输的几项关键技术.首先分析了在监控联网系统中以UDP方式传输流媒体的不足和基于RTP/RTCP协议传输的优势;然后分析了RTP协议在视频传输中的关键参数,并以H.264基本流传输为例,研究了基于RTP/RTCP协议进行媒体传输过程中的H.264参数集应用、RTP封装等几种关键技术,最后设计并实现了一种媒体互联的框架,实验证明互通效果良好.     

Use, perceived deterrence and the role of software piracy in video game console adoption

This paper is an exploratory study into the role of software piracy in the decision to adopt a video game console. The paper takes a rational choice perspective, where actors evaluate the deterrent cost of moral transgression before acting, to explore how users with different levels of video game usage intensity approach the adoption decision, on the grounds that more experienced users can better assess the costs and benefits of moral transgression. The study used focus groups and a literature review to develop a set of factors based on the Theory of Planned Behavior. The resulting factors were operationalized in an online survey of 285 subjects of a variety of ages and incomes. The ability to pirate console software was significant for adopters but not non-adopters. Perceived deterrence was associated with greater system use, as measured by hours of console use per week.     

Exploring software piracy as a factor of video game console adoption

The market for video game consoles is substantial and competition is heated. At the same time, software piracy has seen substantial literature coverage. The hardware controls that ordinarily prevent illegally modified software can be bypassed. As part of an ongoing research project, this paper explores the role of software piracy in the decision to adopt a video game console. This work presents a new research direction, observing software piracy as a previously unforeseen driver of system adoption. This study explores a set of consumers with low disposable incomes, who must make a moral choice with regard to consumption for entertainment. The study used focus groups and a literature review to develop a set of factors based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour. These factors were operationalised in a survey of 150 young adults. Analysis was conducted on the basis of adoption level and gender. In contrast to much prior information systems research, the ability to pirate console software was significant for adopters and both genders, but not non-adopters. Cost was not a significant factor.     

Effectiveness of using a video game to teach a course in mechanical engineering

One of the core courses in the undergraduate mechanical engineering curriculum has been completely redesigned. In the new numerical methods course, all assignments and learning experiences are built around a video/computer game. Students are given the task of writing computer programs to race a simulated car around a track. In doing so, students learn and implement numerical methods content. The design of the course, around a video game, is rooted in commonly accepted theories of how people learn. The article describes a study to assess the effectiveness of the video game-based course. Results show that students taking the game-based course, on average, spend roughly twice as much time, outside of class, on their course work. In a concept mapping exercise, students taking the game-based course demonstrate deeper learning compared to their counterparts taking traditional lecture/textbook-based numerical methods courses.     

Interactive video technology: Enhancing professional learning in initial teacher education

The University of Sussex In-School Teacher Education Project (InSTEP) uses interactive video technologies to enhance initial teacher education programmes for science trainee teachers. With four Internet Protocol cameras and mounted microphones in both school laboratories and the university teaching room, trainees and their tutors have access to live interaction with schools. This paper presents some of the findings of a 2 year evaluation of InSTEP aimed at identifying the benefits for trainee teachers. There has been an increase in the use of video material for teacher training purposes, however, trainee teachers are often intimidated by carefully selected extracts featuring experienced teachers. InSTEP activities are live and capitalise on all the opportunities associated with normal classroom practice. Literature points to InSTEP-type activities having the potential to enhance the development of trainees’ observation skills, develop reflective thinking, to provide authentic illustrations of classroom practice, enable remote observation and facilitate the coaching of trainees by mentors. A fourth generation model of evaluation was undertaken with data generated by semi-structured interviews with university tutors and mentors supported by a questionnaire and group interviews with the trainees. Our main findings point to InSTEP enhancing and accelerating the growth of trainee teachers’ professional knowledge through enabling reflective practice, facilitating collaborative learning and supporting the development of the language of pedagogy.     

军事训练游戏关卡设计校核与验证

针对军事训练游戏关卡设计校核与验证问题,分析了军事训练游戏关卡设计流程,研究了军事训练游戏关卡设计文档需要校核与验证的内容,提出了军事训练游戏关卡设计校核与验证的五项指标以及军事训练游戏关卡设计校核与验证实施步骤。研究的内容对军事训练游戏关卡设计的校核与验证工作具有很好的指导作用,军事训练游戏项目管理人员可以参考提出的校核与验证内容、指标、步骤组织实施关卡设计校核与验证。     

Non-visual game design and training in gameplay skill acquisition – A puzzle game case study

This paper reports the results of a study on the design and evaluation of the game and techniques which allow puzzles to be played in the absence of visual feedback. We have demonstrated that a camera-mouse can be used successfully for blind navigation and target location acquisition within a game field. To gradually teach the players the sequential learning method was applied. Blind exploration of the gamespace was augmented with sticky labels and overview sound cues, verbal and non-verbal, which can significantly reduce the cognitive load and facilitate mental matching and integration. The full-sticky labels technique does not require fine motor skills and allows a user to gain control over the game with a minimum level of skills. With the vertical sticky labels technique training was focused on the development of accurate head movements only on a horizontal plane. With practice, the players can use the non-sticky labels technique. After 240 trials (3–4 h), the cumulative experience of the blindfolded players was increased 22.5–27 times compared to the initial 10 trials.     

A differential game of international pollution control

Pollution is an inevitably by-product of production and damages the environment. The trade-off between production as a good and pollution as a bad over time can be analysed in the framework of a control model, which yields a path of emission charges that force the producers to behave in associally optimal way. Pollution that crosses national borders calls for international coordination of emission charges. In order to estimate the benefits of coordination one must use a realistic non-cooperative equilibrium concept. A natural extension of the control model implies unrealistic assumptions on information and commitment, and under-estimates the damage to the environment of not coordinating emission charges. In this note the more realistic subgame-perfect non-cooperative equilibrium is derived, which reinforces the case for international agreement og on pollution control.