Or, at least that's what a couple of UK researchers seem to think, as this BBC Online article states. For years, parents have worried that sitting in front of a video game for hours on end renders children blind & anti-social (I know I heard more than my share of "Why don't you go outside & play?" when I was growing up), but researchers at Brunel University counter that modern online games such as WoW can actually help prepare children for social & business interaction within the real world.

Which makes perfect sense, once you think about it. At their best, games like WoW can function as a microcosm of our own society; with social interaction, conflict resolution, business transactions, and relationships of all kinds. Sure it's probably still a good idea to get out & ride your bike or toss a football every once in a while...at least until they perfect that virtual-reality stuff they've been promising us ever since The Lawnmower Man.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Virtual selves, Odds and ends, News items