amstah334-blog

[amstah334-blog]

Freedom Creators

Photoshop or any picture editing program expands our creativity.  However, laws and regulations such as Creative Commons prevent us from using our creativity to its fullest potential.  Depending on the license, some photos/ media cannot be edited and distributed legally.  For example, something with a CC BY ND license is allowed to be used however one may like, but the medium itself cannot be altered.  As for using Photoshop, most people use the software to enhance pictures.  There are filters and other features that also allow the user to distort pictures.  I own a picture editing program, and think it is amazing.  It allowed me to do so much with my pictures.  I used to us this program a lot back in high school.  It was a very valuable tool when having to get rid of red-eye pictures as well as sharpen or increase color saturation. 

Photo-editing programs are used by many.  Photographers use it all the time for shoots.  They take their pictures then edit them to transform the person or object into whatever they envisioned.  An example would be removing blemishes from ones face in order for the model to appear flawless.  If the flawless photo is released and someone else edits, distributes and tries to call it their own work, they could be charged.  Photoshop programs are sometimes used to deceive.  It’s all about the image.  For example, if a magazine wanted to promote fitness, they would find a fit model, and if he or she had any “problem areas,” they would “fix” them using the software.  This is misleading to the reader and could also be a reason behind low self-esteem issues.  (Sorry this kind of went off on a tangent)

Although having too strict laws and regulations is a problem, not having enough of them could also be a hindrance to creativity.  Without licenses and laws to protect ones works, no one would get ahead.  In this case, photographers would lose profit, and their name would not mean very much.  An example would be Steve McCurry’s “A Life Revealed” picture.  If there were no laws to protect this picture, and the rights of its creator, other magazines could take the photo, edit it, and then run it in their magazine without crediting or compensating the original photographer. 

http://www.sodahead.com/fun/what-is-your-favorite-eye-colour/question-2855503/?page=2&link=ibaf&q=&imgurl=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j-boRqVQfzU/TiB8gkF0rwI/AAAAAAAACLM/Vn5S6Ea5I5o/s1600/national-geographic-100-best-pictures-cover.jpg

Changes that I would impose would be to allow all one to build on top of someone else’s work, but give credit to the original.  So in other words get rid of the CC BY ND, but if profit is made, a cut would go to the original creator.  Another change would be to allow the editor to distribute their work, but again, give credit where credit is due.  Another change would be, whatever pictures are edited should be tagged, and if someone else wanted to build/ edit it, their tag would be added onto the original tag.  It would work something like watermarking, but it would be more like a digital tag rather than a tag that distorts the picture itself. 

In conclusion, I believe that everyone should have the freedom to be creative, even if it means using the work of someone else for inspiration.  

[amstah334-blog]

Barney's blog comes from "How I Met Your Mother"... I think I said it came from the Big Bang theory.. sorry!

[amstah334-blog]

Liveblog the Classroom (December 6, 2012) entry 3

9:05    Nat’s (ignite) presentation: “Piano’s where they came from, how they work and where they’re going” 

Nice presentation! Don’t forget to email us when you have the date for your senior recital next semesterJ

9:15    Justin (legalese blonde) presentation: Nintendo vs. Impulse Tech. Ltd.

Nintendo has been around for that long? (O.O) 

9:25    Pat (ignite) presentation: “Procrastination”

            Oh that word…It was interesting to learn that procrastination is due to primal instincts.  So for those who don’t procrastinate, can they be considered to be more evolved than others? 

9:32    Transmedia storytelling.  TMNT and Twilight vs. the Matrix

            The main difference was that TMNT and Twilight are retellings of a book, whereas the Matrix is not.  Would Disney movies (the ones with sequels) be included in the transmedia category as well?

9:45    Commercial media is a growing trend.  Medieval Christianity in Europe is an example of transmedia storytelling.

The Star trek series are also examples (all of them…the old, the new and the animated).  What it comes down to is extending the narrative over a broad range of media. 

9:50    How I Met Your Mother—Bro-Code: Barney’s Blog

            It’s a 30 minute show that follows a conventional/traditional format of broadcasting.  Barney’s blog is an example of transmedia.  His character updates his blog regularly.  This makes viewers feel more connected and more likely to follow the series.

9:52    Screenwriters change the way things are done.  Write an evolving character in order to have potential for sequels.

            Hmm… it still sounds like it’s just another way to make profit off of the viewers/fans. 

9:55    Indexicality:  one has more artistic credit than the other. (Odyssey vs. Matrix)

            We read the Odyssey in high school; it was a pain to read.  Like Sam said, it was cryptic; the way they spoke back in the day is different from how we speak today. Therefore, the small details that would be obvious to those back then isn’t so apparent to us. 

10:00  Animatrix- the Second Renaissance Pt. 1 Task: list as many references you find in the video.

            Zion archive looks like Buddha (lotus)/ Hindu (Hindu god with 4 arms)

            Machines crossing the street look like something out of I-Robot.

            BI66ER- sounds like something out of AI, a robot with feelings & (mentioned in class Bigger Thomas)

            Machine kneeling on ground/ burying them in a pit reminds me of something you’d see in a movie about genocide of the Jewish by the Nazi’s.

10:07  Examples of indexicality. 

            Building a skyscraper (Egyptian), why pull a rope, they’re robots

            Building NY, What’s the purpose of a break, they’re robots.

            Christianity “in the beginning it was good”.

[amstah334-blog]

Liveblog the Classroom (December 4, 2012) entry 2

9:00 Free coffee, donuts and pizza~ courtesy of the previous class:)!

9:10 AMST334 Informal evaluation/ consent to use materials for future classes.

9:13 Pat’s Presentation.  Electronic Sports (eSports).  Competitive video gaming and getting paid while doing so.  I was amazed that a person could make $400,000 just playing videogames; not to mention retire at 25.  Coaching~ wow! I never knew you could coach someone to play videogames… and make a profit on it. 

9:25 Group Activity (Laryngitis Edition) I was in group I (CC BY SA).  CC BY SA is an acronym for “Creative Commons by Share Alike.”  You’re allowed to use the media, but a license must be applied to it even after work has been done to modify it.  The user may not imply that the licensor endorses their work.  Also, once the media is purchased, the buyer can do what they want with it. 

10:04 CC BY NC (NonCommercial) Works cannot be used for commercial purposes. (ie. Lessig’s book).  It is alright to distribute and copy the material as long as it’s not for profit. 

10:06 CC BY ND (NoDerivatives).  Users are allowed to share, distribute, transmit, and make commercial use of the work.  However, one cannot alter the work or build on it.

10:08 CC BY NC- SA (NonCommercial- ShareAlike).  This is the most restrictive license.  The user is allowed to distribute the work, but not allowed to alter it.  Some examples are Flickr and sound cloud. 

10:15 Wikipedia is also licensed under CC.  After this exercise, I give credit to those who have to settle the claims to these licenses.  We briefly went over the different types, and it was overwhelming.  Why are there so many CC’s?

10:20 Group Discussion on Boss Mission.  T_T OMG its next week already!!

[amstah334-blog]

Ecstasies and Influences

            Jonathan Lethem’s The Ecstasy of Influence: a Plagiarism was an interesting read.  In the first paragraph “Love and Theft” he talked about Lichberg and Nabokov’s similar works.  He stated that “Lichberg published his tale of Lolita in 1916, forty years before Vladimir Nabokov’s novel.”  Lethem’s question was “Did Nabokov, who remained in Berlin until 1937, adopt Lichberg’s tale consciously?”  I think there is a possibility that Nobokov did not read Lichberg’s work.  However, forty years is a long time, and could have been a tremendous inspiration.  This scenario reminded me of Darwin and Wallace.  For those who are not familiar with these two, Darwin is known for his Theory of Evolution.  Unfortunately for Wallace, he was working on the same kind of research and sent a copy of his works to Darwin to be looked over.  This gave Darwin the push to hurry up and publish his works.  In this case, neither parties copied each other; they just had the same ideas.

            Lethem wrote, “Literature has been in a plundered, fragmentary state for a long time.”  I agree, creators take bits and pieces of other works, throw in a few of their own ideas and call the entire piece their own.  This makes me wonder about screen writers.  For example, the common fairytale storyline; the princess is in trouble, her prince saves her and they live happily ever after.  Many screen-writers use this plot, especially in chick flicks.  However, I doubt that the original person who came up with this plot is credited for every movie or film that is made.  Last class we learned about the fashion industry and how they do not have copyright laws.  They are allowed to use others designs and claim them as their own.  I agree that they designers should use past designs to inspire them to create new pieces, but also give credit to the original work. 

In addition, in the “Surrounded by Signs” section, Lethem stated “The surrealists believed that objects in the world possess a certain but unspecifiable intensity that had been dulled by everyday use and utility.”  In other words, to us, our routines are seen as dull and boring, but to an observer it can be unexpected and mysterious.  He mentions the dilemma of photography.  A photographer takes a picture of a building, but does he or she need to compensate the building owner?  I think this would be silly to enforce.  However, if the photographer would be making a profit, then maybe they should compensate the person who owns the building.  My thinking is that if the picture was taken with no intent of making a profit, compensation is unnecessary.  It would be nice though, if a tag was added as to where the location of the picture was taken. 

In the “You Can’t Steal a Gift” section, Lethem defines a gift as something that “conveys an uncommodifiable surplus of inspiration.” This is so true.  As for the question of copying being essential to artistry, I suppose it is.  Many simple things can inspire the creativity of a designer, artist, or even photographer.  In another point of view, “copying” could be viewed as something constructive.  Taking bits of things and adding a personal touch to it is something to be encouraged to an extent.  It is defining the line between plagiarism and crediting ones inspiration that seems to be the ongoing problem.  

[amstah334-blog]

Sorry! This was supposed to be linked in the #askapirate post~

[amstah334-blog]

Liveblog the Classroom (November 29, 2012) entry1

9:05: Woohoo!! NO quiz! J  Doah starts her “Legalese Blonde” presentation.  Her topic, Whitmill vs. Warner Brothers Inc. Mike Tyson’s facial tattoo is copied and used on another actor without consent of artist in “Hangover Part 2”.  I agree, it was shady of the artist, because if it were on anyone else, he probably would not be looking into being compensated. 

9:20: Class discussion about copyright laws.  Wise words of Sean, “Don’t get Mike Tyson’s Tattoo on your face…” Many changes occurred to copyright laws in the mid to late 70’s.  Copyright laws are so tricky, there are so many loop holes and I’m not too sure how, but I think they should be simplified somehow.

9:30: Discuss Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and OCILLA (Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act).  Online service providers are able to take themselves out of the legal battle by the means of copyright laws.  I don’t think this is fair…they provide the content, and yet just by “taking down” what they posted, they are no longer in trouble while the third party still would face penalties if caught.

9:35: Anti-Circumvention - Content scrambling system (CSS) and DeCSS.  DMCA made DeCSS illegal, but allowed some users (ie Sean using CSS for instructional purposes)

9:47: War on Drugs.  Drug use is banned even though it is known to be used.  I never thought about it in that way.  It kind of makes me wonder how out of hand the problem would be if the ban was lifted.

9:53: The Fashion industry does not have any kind of copyright laws, only trademark protection.  I thought this was crazy!  I thought some kind of credit went to the original designer.  Vintage designs are amazing, but for designers to have the ability to legally use them without giving credit is mind boggling.

10:00: Knock offs vs. high end luxury items.  I thought it was interesting how that one designer tried to be trickier when designing their shoes out of steal; it was ingenious.  Now I know why designers plaster their trademark on many of their products. 

10:05: U.S. Design piracy act.  EU vs. US intellectual property laws. 

10:08: Group discussion about final boss.  Locations are set.  All we need is to write our script and make a storyboard. EXCITED!! J

[amstah334-blog]

Intellectual Property Rights Interview

This evening I interviewed my friend Sophie about intellectual property rights.  Throughout the interview I gained new perspectives, we didn't really discuss research papers in class, but she made a valid point.  Some scientist spend their entire lives on a research project, so credit should be given where its due.  Also, throughout the interview, it was nice to see the common views that we share.  Anyway, the interview went something like this...

April: “What do you think about the current laws and regulations surrounding intellectual property? The definition of Intellectual property from Wikipedia is…Intellectual property (IP) is a juridical concept which refers to creations of the mind for which exclusive rights are recognized.[1] Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic works; discoveries and inventions; and words, phrases, symbols, and designs. Common types of intellectual property rights include copyright, trademarks, patents, industrial design rights and in some jurisdictions trade secrets.  Although many of the legal principles governing intellectual property rights have evolved over centuries, it was not until the 19th century that the term intellectual property began to be used, and not until the late 20th century that it became commonplace in the majority of the world.[2] 

Sophie: “They’re a little over the top…They fine you so much money just for one song.  Without the fans that listen to the music or buy these books, the people who came up with them don’t have anything.  Yet, they’re penalizing the people who give you your money in the end.””

April: “What rights do you think content creators should have?”

Sophie: “They do have the right to what they created, I don’t think they have to right to go out and heavily punish the people who supposedly steal what they created.  Although to some extent, there should be some kind of –punishment.

April: “What rights do you think content users should have?”

Sophie: “I think they should be able to get whatever they want to get, but if they do get caught, it shouldn’t be really bad punishment for them.  If they do get caught, they should get more warnings.”

April: “Do you think there are ethical dimensions (as opposed to just legal ones) to intellectual property rights?”

Sophie: “Of course, when I think of property rights, I think more towards the musical industry, or downloading music, downloading movies for free.  There’s also the aspect of more research papers and stuff, it’s something that people put their lives into, and so if someone uses that without their permission I think there’s definitely some bad ethics.  Whereas when you make some kind of parody, people obviously know it’s not yours, you’re just building off of it, it’s more for yourself.  So in terms of ethics, it depends on what you’re using it for and how you’re using it.”

April: “What do you think about DJ’s using other people’s work (remixes)?”

Sophie: “Good if they use someone else’s work, then if it comes out catchy, it draws attention not only to the person themselves, but also to the original work.  But if you don’t give credit, that’s a big no no.” 

April: “What do you think about artists using others works (ie. That picture that you posted on my Facebook? (Be sure to link picture)”

Sophie: “That’s okay, it’s more of a problem to me, if you take someone’s drawing, as is, and claim it as your own.”

April: “Do you knowingly pirate media? Why or why not?”

Sophie:  “I pirate media… I’m poor, a college student, can’t afford to go to the theater, might as well just watch it in my room.”

April: “Under federal law, downloaders can be fined up to $150,000 per music track.  When researching the issue, an article about a Minnesota woman came up.  She was fined $1.9 million for downloading 24 tracks.  Four men who ran the site she downloaded from spent a year in jail for making downloads available.  Do you think penalties are fair? If not, how would you prosecute these people?”

Sophie: “These artists and actors are making millions of dollars doing what they do… let people listen to your music.  It’s how you get fans.  $1.9 million is definitely not worth it.  The penalties are not fair.  There should be a fine, maybe a couple hundred per song.”

April: “As far as jail time, do you think that was fair?”

Sophie: “I think the people that who made it available were more in the wrong that the person who downloaded it.  My mentality, if you don’t want it to get leaked and have people downloading it illegally then, the company who has the songs should prevent it from getting out.  Whatever they do, there are people who will find loopholes and ways to get the music, movies, books, and art that they want.”

April: “Take- down notice discussed in class.  The major company will no longer be in the wrong, but the person downloading will still be fined.  Do you think that’s fair?”

Sophie: “No, it’s not entirely the downloaders fault, the person who uploaded it made it available to everyone.  If the uploader is let off the hook, then the downloader should be too.”

[amstah334-blog]

Walden 2.0

Oh my gosh! It’s good to be back on the internet! This mission was much more difficult than I thought it would be.  Even after letting my friends and parents know that I would be disconnecting myself from the world for 24 hours, I still received a slew of text messages, emails and missed phone calls.  I have to admit, it was somewhat relaxing not having to deal with texts and emails.  And it did make me a little more productive.  However, it did get boring…very quickly.  I didn't realize how much I depended on my phone and the internet.  Even listening to music became an issue.  No internet meant no Spotify and no Pandora.  This drove me crazy.  I do have a music library on my computer, but after a while, it got tiresome listening to the same songs over and over again.  

I felt it the most when waiting for class to start.  Usually, if I get to class early, I would listen to music or play some kind of game.  T_T My music and games are all on my phone, which had to be turned off for this mission.  Not to mention, the habit of checking the time to see how much longer you have to sit in a lecture made me look silly.  After my first class, I walked back to the dorm, and did some reading.  Sadly, after about an hour it got boring and I ended up staring at the walls of my room.  It was so mind-numbingly dull that I decided to take a nap.  That wasn't such a good idea.  Again, I had forgotten that I depend on the alarm clock on my phone, which was turned off.  Good thing my roommate who was also in my next class came back to the room. 

After I was through with classes for the day, difficulty went up by a level.  Trying to make Friday night plans was a pain and being out of the loop was very frustrating.  Having to rely on others to relay information to me made me feel like I was back in intermediate school.  Yes, I realized that it was bad planning on my part to do this mission on a Friday but, it made the mission interesting.  Travel wasn't too much of a problem because I could depend on my friends to look up the bus schedule.  However, it was an irritating feeling to have to ask. 

Time without my phone made me think.  I didn't get a cell phone till I was in the seventh grade, but now I see elementary school children running around with smart phones.  If I’m dependent on my phone now, how will these kids fair when they are my age?  Also, it made me wonder, what would life be like without all these advances in technology?  I remember my first phone was that indestructible Nokia.  It did not have all the capabilities the modern day phone has.  And the most entertaining game one could play was snake.  There was no Fruit Ninja or Song Pop and text messaging was still a very new feature.  All in all I can’t imagine life without my phone, and this mission made me more aware of how rapidly technology progresses.  

[amstah334-blog]

In the reading it mentions a lot about America’s POV when it comes to videogames and the army and not much about other countries. Do you think there would be a shift in the way videogames and the army are viewed if it was another country (Afghanistan, Britain, another country who has an army) or...

I think video games not being a recruiting tool is a double standard. It wouldn't be seen as a threat if it were an ally country like Britain, but as soon as a country that has the capabilities to cause great destruction comes into the picture, I think the U.S would have something to say.  In addition to what was said in the class discussion, I believe that the army should not try to reach out to kids through the means of video games. Stahl mentions that some say that the video game gives the player the general idea of what the army is all about.  However, it doesn't tell the whole truth.  I feel that there are many details that are not mentioned in the game, and only the glamorous side (action) is seen.  An example would be the politics behind the fighting...

[amstah334-blog]

I agree there should be concern about teachers and librarians wanting to ban the Harry Potter series from the book shelves.  I enjoyed the book series as well as the movies.  It was definitely a large part of my childhood.  I think it would be more harmful than beneficial to ban the series because it does encourage the reader to push the limits of their imagination while increasing literacy.  I understand that this series may not be appropriate for book reports or replace other scholastic reads but, it does get students to pick up a book and turn off the television.  In elementary school, teachers try t encourage "out of the box" thinking.  By reading this genre of books, one may develop a wild imagination, but it also could increase ones creativity.  I definitely hope that this series is not banned from the shelves and that everyone has the opportunity to be captivated by the magical world of Harry Potter.

Why would teachers and librarians want to have the book Harry Potter banned from the shelves if it builds both child imagination and literacy? How did it build such a big controversy when there have been other books that have been produced having the same genre?

Do the kids that participate in The Daily Prophet

[amstah334-blog]

Why would teachers and librarians want to have the book Harry Potter banned from the shelves if it builds both child imagination and literacy? How did it build such a big controversy when there have been other books that have been produced having the same genre?

Do the kids that participate in The Daily Prophet

[amstah334-blog]

Critique it!

                                    One of my favorite games for the Nintendo DS is Brain Age.  This game is simple and keeps the player motivated.  With the work of neuroscientist Dr. Kawashima, the makers of the game claim “The design of Brain Ages is based on the premise that cognitive exercise can improve blood flow to the brain” (Brain Age).  They also go on to claim that just a few minutes a day will help strengthen ones brain.  There are fifteen activities, and each day one plays it, their time and score is recorded.  Although there are fifteen activities, each one does not have to be played daily.  This allows the player to choose their own challenges.

In relation to Jane McGonigal’s “Reality is Broken,” Brain Age is most relatable to fix number two; emotional activation.  She states that “compared with games, reality is depressing.  Games focus our energy, with relentless optimism, on something we’re good at and enjoy.”  Within this chapter she covers the concept of ‘fiero’.  McGonigal defines ‘fiero’ as “the most primal emotional rush we can experience.”  This is seen when a player experiences euphoria after earning a young brain age.  If he or she actually plays the game daily, and sees the progress he or she has made, their sense of satisfaction and achievement increases.  McGonigal also states that too much ‘fiero’ can lead to addiction.  Brain Age is fun to play and has the potential to become addictive, however, a type of fatigue system is enforced.  The player has the option to redo an activity, but the game will only record the first score.  Also, for most activities, a single level can be unlocked daily.  The player is allowed to go back and replay previous levels for practice, but not for a recorded time. An example would be the piano activity.  A single song is unlocked each day, but previously unlocked songs are accessible for practice. 

                           As for her concept of ‘flow,’ McGonigal defines it as “the satisfying, exhilarating feeling of creative accomplishment and heightened functioning.”  The activities in Brain Age allow a player to experience flow because the activities are challenging, have a clear goal, leaves room for improvement and increased difficulty.  After reaching the rocket animation, one then has the option to take on a more difficult version of the same activity.  There is also continuous feedback built into the system.  For example, if the player hasn’t played for several days Dr. Kawashima’s avatar will tell him or her something like “I haven’t seen you in (insert exact amount of days you haven’t played here).”  Also, if the player does not show progress in an activity the avatar will say something encouraging rather than something negative. 

                                       All in all, this game is amazing.  Not only does the player stimulate and strengthen his or her mind, but also gets to experience flow and fiero with the minimization of videogame addiction.  

[amstah334-blog]

Wait, What?

In Stahl’s “War, Media, and Popular Culture,” he makes a point that “The problem is that integration into a sanitized fantasy of war is a seduction whose pleasures are felt at the expense of the capacity for critical engagement in matters of military power.  One might say that the freedom to play war in the midst of war is not free.”  Other than the obvious, what costs are there, and how are they related to the game?  Stahl also mentions that Wardynski insists that the game “America’s Army” is “definitely not” a recruiting tool.  Even though he denies the game being a tool, is right to be luring the young to join the army through a videogame?  Lastly, Stahl closes with “video games are increasingly both the medium and the metaphor by which we understand war,” this may be true, but do the benefits outweigh the costs of producing such realistic and violent games?

[amstah334-blog]

Man On The Street

For this mission, I interviewed my friend Yousuke and asked him about his view on videogames.  Although he is more interested in TCG (trading card games), he does find time on the weekends to play Super Mario Smash Bros.-Brawl with his friends.  There are opinions that I share with him, and there are a few that wowed me. 

  April (A):        Do you like videogames?

Yousuke (Y):  Yea, I do.  It’s part of my life and I don’t think I can live without them.

A:        What is your favorite videogame?

Y:        I play Pokémon games pretty consistently.

A:        What is your favorite videogame?

Y:        I play Pokémon games pretty consistently.

A:        How often do you play video games?

Y:        When I get into it I could put it 8 hours a day.

A:        If you had a whole day just to play videogames what would you do?

Y:        With no commitments…There’s other things I could do that is just as fun.  Maybe put in like half the day into it.

A:        What other games do you enjoy?

Y:        I play a lot of trading card games currently and I am pretty addicted to it.

A:        What do you know about art? What do you think about art?

Y:        Persons skill, imagination.  It’s nice.

A:        Do you think videogames can be viewed as art?

Y:        Both from creator’s side and the players.  From the creators, it takes creative thinking, creative skill to make one to construct one.  As for the player, you need to be able to beat puzzles, get to the goal, and solve problems. This is essentially what an art is.

A:        Growing up you played video games and card games. What did your parents think?

Y:        First picked up a game mother was okay about it, as long as it wasn’t too much.  I picked it up again in late elementary school.  They’d limit play to two or three hours a day or after you finish your homework.

A:        Would you rather go out and play tennis or would you rather play your favorite videogame?

Y:        Like both equally the same.  If I’m replaying a game that I played before, then I’d lean towards tennis.  If it’s a new release and I want to beat it then…screw tennis.

A:        Do you know friends that play too much?

Y:        Yes, definitely.  I think out of my three roommates, 3/3 they all play a little too much and they’re pretty addicted.  Some of them sacrifice sleep over it, so that’s pretty much what addiction is.

A:        Describe a game in one word?

Y:        Two words come into my mind, addiction. Sex it’s kind of like sex.

A:        What do you think the net impact is on society?

Y:        With everything there are both positive and negative impacts.  It does teach you some type of moral, problem solving skills is brushed up on.  Negatively, you could play too much. Overall, it’s not something that should be banned it should be promoted.

A:        Should games be integrated with the educational system?

Y:        Yea, maybe sometimes.  For example, for my game theory class, we turn in homework based on a role of a die, its 100% random chance so it’s like a game.  We already see some classrooms integrating stuff like that.  Whatever it takes to have students be more attentive is good.

It was interesting to find out that there is another class that integrates games into their curriculum.  I agree that games should sometimes be integrated into the educational system and teachers and professors should do whatever it takes to have students be more attentive.  I had a good laugh when he mentioned that all three of his roommates were videogame addicts and that he himself is addicted to a TCG.  All in all the interview was fun and gave me the opportunity to talk about something I normally would not talk about with my friend. :)