Binary and Boolean Building Brains

Growing up I would encounter various people from all walks of life; each one unique and with some form of intelligence. Yet, I would come to notice that specific people I had interacted with have a particular education present. This education is not one that stems from a school per se, but rather a powerful form of relaxation.

Gaming is connotative toward a form of playing electronic games through applications and programs; this is done through specific devices such as computers, consoles, cellphones, etc. The purpose behind this development is to create a form of escape and relaxation based on games that did not require an extra physical presence - as previously, board games and other physical games required more the one player to participate. An era of single-player gaming would emerge and see the surfacing of a new member of society; the gamer.

The gamer is an introverted being; one that is reclusive and closed off toward the outside world. Not all gamers are socially experienced either, having spent most of their time within the realms of Boolean and binary law. This is not to say that they are lacking in any mental departments, as a matter of fact, it becomes interesting to find out that gamers are perhaps better at solving problems, reading, learning and understanding. According to the EducationWorld website, Marcia Baldanza, a principal at an elementary school in Alexandra, Virginia, had this to say, “Children learn best when the content is relevant to them and when they can connect new learning with old… Finding the Velcro to make those connections can be challenging, but with games, it's easy."

Issues emerge as time progresses – as with everything that brings joy. The technological advancements within gaming have been tremendous, as the audio and visual quality achieve a new benchmark every few years. This goes on to the creation of censored games, those of which promote violence, sexually indecent acts and theft. As social beings we are influenced by the media, as well as the games we play – this can be deduced through the 1961 Bobo Doll Experiment. Other than the subtle, negative influence, there is an issue of balance: gamers tend to often get somewhat addicted to their habitual escape form reality, leading to poor social skills and often, a lack of common sense. The best rule to abide by whether gaming, drinking, exercising, sleeping, or eating, is to keep everything in moderation; use and do not abuse.

Through correct balance, gaming can be extremely advantageous to the mind and our faculties of thinking. The CreativeTeachingSite website offers an article on ten benefits that can be derived from playing electronic games; these benefits can be seen as attributes to which gamers already have due to the gaming in which they regularly participate.

The Ten Benefits

According to the website, the benefits range from skills such as reading, to the development of strategies.

Reading – In many games, more particularly the adventure genre, a person can learn and work on reading skills through the many quests or objectives that entertain the gamer. Games with a lot of text and reading will help develop the gamer’s mind in terms of reading and understanding (at times, ambiguous) text anywhere inside and outside of reality.

Logical Thinking – Learning to run through sequences within the mind becomes a natural skill that becomes developed when gaming for some time. Nearly any game, especially real-time strategy (RTS) and role playing games (RPG) will aid in learning logical thinking. Simple logical steps such as opening a door, selecting specific items for specific purposes, or completing a puzzle within a game can lead to more beneficial results in common sense and logic.

Observational Skills – Various professions require a person to have keen observational skills and a superb eye for noticing subtle things. Pilots, doctors, scientists, etc. all need to have this attribute as their jobs will often depend on it. Electronic games have a specific way of exercising those faculties for observation; with focus on certain aspects within a game, such as an objective to collect the ingredients for a potion in a RPG-style game, the player would have to notice the specific items needed, regardless of peripheral vision within the display.

Map Making and Map Reading Skills – Many people cannot read maps naturally and so gaming helps develop this skill.  Within nearly every genre of game there is usually a map of some sorts which will indicate to a person every direction – north, east, south, and west. With this skill people can understand and visualise birds-eye view perspectives and interpret as well as create maps in nearly all situations.

Vocabulary Development – With the audio and visual effects that gaming and the simulation brings, there is room for enhancing and improving one’s vocabulary skills. Various words will be used in order to bring purpose and fun to the game; so as a participant, one will learn the terminology for the specific functions and features of the simulation. For example,  within a RTS there are usually resources to collect in order for the participant or gamer to establish an in-game city and economy, so terms like ‘extract’, ‘gather’ and ‘insufficient’ are used frequently, thus the ability to develop the vocabulary of the gamer

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Familiar Knowledge – “Familiar knowledge is knowledge of common things.” Gaming introduces expansion and exploration into new territories or areas, such as Africa (FarCry 2) or China (Emperor). With this knowledge people can learn where specific items or landmarks are associated, such as the pyramids or Great Wall of China.

Spelling – Most games or simulations will allow an array of words and the correct spelling for them, however there are a few that specifically test spelling as a requirement to progress. Simulations such as those help with strengthening the spelling and overall language skill of the gamer.

Note Taking – Taking down vital notes or using memory to retain specific information for games proves beneficial to exercising neurological faculties. With games like Tetris the observer would take note of the next shape that is to fall, as well as the spatial positioning of the already fallen shapes. This helps aid in studying and organisational skills.

Problem Solving – Within pretty much every single game there is a problem to solve, the missions, objectives or goals ensure that specific problems must be resolved in order to progress further. This skill can be carried across through school, high school, college and the various career paths that require problem solving as a skill.

Developing Strategies – In order to get through repetition, or again, specific objectives, there can often be a requirement for developing one’s own strategy that would be used to progress the participant. In electronic trading card games (TCG) the player would go up against either online players or a virtual player of the game (also known as an Artificial Intelligence (AI) player) and have to employ specific strategies in order to defeat their opponent. Within various games races, classes, elements and other groups are usually evident, resulting in specific attributes that determine the capability and potential strategy of a participant. This all aids in the development and evolution of the gamer’s mind.

Conclusion

Gaming has often been shoved aside and labelled as a grotesque form of anti-socialism, with stereotypes such as ‘nerd’ and ‘geek’ that have been perpetuated for over a decade. Research now proves that those gamers, or ‘nerds’, have higher mental ability than the average person and it is the gaming that takes the prize. Gaming can be most beneficial, yet with moderation. Without the moderation and with the abuse, there can only be detriment – to either physical or mental health. Give it a try sometime: Get a game, finish it, and see how you feel.