Gaming addiction. Does it really happen?

Gaming addiction is a phenomenon that has a rising trend as we move forward to the future. What is that makes us game addicts though?

Civilization V - Game-play screenshot

Be honest here. Of those of you that play or played games, in some point in your life, did you not participate in the following situation? Your mom or dad calls you for dinner. You are in the middle of an "important" decision in a game and you scream back "I 'll be there in a minute". Then the one minute becomes five and the five ten. Finally you join them in the middle of dinner as if you were dealing with a life altering decision back there.

Of course some of you will say I don't get controlled by games, I don't play them. The difference is that you are not playing games. If you don't use something how will you be addicted to it. In the place of "games" you can put something else in there, like a TV program, reading, smoking a cigarette, work papers etc. A task you are doing that in the process causes you to be unsociable.

How does gaming addiction relates to science though? Apparently many studies have been conducted around this issue. An early research by Ko, Chih-Hung et al in 2009, showed that gaming addiction and substance addiction may share the same neurobiological mechanism.

Photo of the Day: Moonlight Sonata!

As seen from the beautiful island of Cyprus.

The Moon Entering Earth's Shadow

 

Image Credit & Copyright: Thodoris Tzalavras

Source and explanation:  Astronomy Picture of the Day

Surgical restoration of hand and arm movements for quadriplegics!

A few years ago while I was talking with a close friend, I brought up the subject of full body regeneration as a joke (that was me watching too much anime that time) and we debated whether that was possible to happen in the future, that being a hundred years or a million years from now.

Although this is not the case I am reporting here, the breakthrough technique that has been developed by scientists of the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, showed me that when it comes to science and innovation, dreams are not unachievable.

Slight restoration of hand and arm movement for quadriplegics, is a small step towards the big goal that is, full body movement restoration for people with spinal cord injuries.

The biggest gain though is not what is does for science, but the  betterment of quality of life of the people suffering with spinal cord injuries.

Photo of the Day: Optogenetics. Being Controlled by Light!

It is like living inside a science-fiction movie. A revolutionary new technique called optogenetics lets scientists control your neurons by focusing light on them.

Image credit: Ed Boyden and Massachusetts Institute of Technology McGovern Institute

Original Source: Optogenetics -- revolutionary new research technique (Image 1)

Courtesy: National Science Foundation 

The best place to be a scientist today

A question that certainly circles in the minds of many scientists today is, "What is the best place to conduct research?". Europe, USA, China, Australia, Russia?

As it seems this variable changes more easily as the weather does. Recently China has an increasing culture focus into producing 'quality and open research', previously being accused of an increasing number of academic fraud.

The Nobel prize awarded to Chinese scientist Youyou Tu for the discovery of a new therapy of malaria, is a great example and indication of this focus. It's not the fact that a Chinese won a Nobel prize that is remarkable in this case, but that the research conducted and the discovery, were done within the confines of a Chinese Institute.

More on these news can be read in the article featured in Science Alert:

China now spends more on science than the EU, will soon overtake the US

The fact that China, the biggest nation in the world, is finally willing to spend more on science research, is joyous news for scientists all around the globe, as the scientific advancements are only bound to intensify as we move on to the future.

A potential healthy competition between scientists of different nations (not pharmaceutical and industrial moguls) is sure to push the boundaries of science research to new levels, and the potential of this could be no more better for the world.