The Nintendo DS outsold every other console in the U.S. in February with 485,000 units sold. The Nintendo Wii, sold 335,000 units during the month, followed by Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 with 228,000 units and Sony's PlayStation 3 with 127,000 units.
The Wii has been a hit with kids, women and older players - customers beyond the typical "hardcore" gamer niche of young men.
The Wii sells for $250 vs. the PS3 which starts at $500.
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If you think video games are a waste of time it might be worth your while to check out Steven Johnson's book Everything Bad is Good for You
.
.I wrote a bit about the ideas in that book in We're All Getting Smarter and Kids - Too Wired Today?
Activities that challenge and exercise our mind, body or spirit are valuable in maintaining and enhancing our abilities. We are naturally drawn to solving complex problems, pattern recognition, and systems thinking (understanding how things fit together and interact). Some video games fit into this category. There are lots of options.
You could learn to knit, climb a rock wall, play a challenging video game, learn to ride a unicycle, volunteer, do a crossword or Sudoku puzzle, blog, read, plant a garden, study the Bible, take Yoga, cook or eat a new food, learn about meditation, paint, write a Haiku or a poem....you name it.
It has to be something outside your normal comfort zone if you want to Think Like Leonardo
(the painter/architect/scientist/inventor....not the Ninja Turtle).
Anything that requires "you" do something is goodness, which rules out a lot of TV watching, web surfing, newspaper/news reading, or video games that primarily require "thumb" skills.
Mindless activity in a Zen sense would be good - doing and thinking nothing, or as little as possible, is truly relaxing - and clears out your mind so you can think clearly about what it is that gives your life meaning. Try doing nothing sometime - it's a heck of a lot harder than you might think.
To paraphrase John Prine...
Turn off the TV, throw away the paper, take a trip to the country, eat a lot of peaches, try to find Jesus (enlightenment) on your own.
Oddly enough that enlightenment, or finding meaning in your life, may not come from sitting on a mountaintop, gazing at your navel or living in a convent but rather by becoming as fully engaged as possible with people, places, creatures and things where you are right now. The more open you are to new experiences (of course with a good anchor and a compass to keep you from getting swept away into some kind of weirdness) the better - you'll be more interesting and find others to be as well.
At least that's my story for today.
Wishing you a wonderful Wednesday.
Activities that challenge and exercise our mind, body or spirit are valuable in maintaining and enhancing our abilities. We are naturally drawn to solving complex problems, pattern recognition, and systems thinking (understanding how things fit together and interact). Some video games fit into this category. There are lots of options.
You could learn to knit, climb a rock wall, play a challenging video game, learn to ride a unicycle, volunteer, do a crossword or Sudoku puzzle, blog, read, plant a garden, study the Bible, take Yoga, cook or eat a new food, learn about meditation, paint, write a Haiku or a poem....you name it.
It has to be something outside your normal comfort zone if you want to Think Like Leonardo
(the painter/architect/scientist/inventor....not the Ninja Turtle).Anything that requires "you" do something is goodness, which rules out a lot of TV watching, web surfing, newspaper/news reading, or video games that primarily require "thumb" skills.
Mindless activity in a Zen sense would be good - doing and thinking nothing, or as little as possible, is truly relaxing - and clears out your mind so you can think clearly about what it is that gives your life meaning. Try doing nothing sometime - it's a heck of a lot harder than you might think.
To paraphrase John Prine...
Turn off the TV, throw away the paper, take a trip to the country, eat a lot of peaches, try to find Jesus (enlightenment) on your own.
Oddly enough that enlightenment, or finding meaning in your life, may not come from sitting on a mountaintop, gazing at your navel or living in a convent but rather by becoming as fully engaged as possible with people, places, creatures and things where you are right now. The more open you are to new experiences (of course with a good anchor and a compass to keep you from getting swept away into some kind of weirdness) the better - you'll be more interesting and find others to be as well.
At least that's my story for today.
Wishing you a wonderful Wednesday.
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