Study: MMORPGs Critical in Developing Tomorrow's Business Leaders

One of the neat things about educational videogames is the vast multitude of angles the research can take. Whether it is military/industrial applications, classroom adaptations, or medical appropriations, videogames can be used and studied in a wide variety of educational settings. Matthew Kirdahy has a nice article over at Sify.com on how playing MMORPGs can lead to enhanced business skills. Kirdahy gives a nod to another article appearing in the May issue of Harvard Business Review that marks the culmination of considerable research on the topic.

The article’s authors, Byron Reeves (Stanford University), Thomas W. Malone (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and Tony O’Driscoll (North Carolina State), found that leadership in online games offers a sneak preview of tomorrow’s business world. In fact, they said these games exhibit leadership abilities crucial to the future of business.

Here is the key paragraph from the HBR article regarding the sometimes serendipitous but always interesting findings:

A number of our conclusions about the future of business leadership were unanticipated. For one, individuals you’d never expect to identify—and who’d never expect to be identified—as “high potentials” for real-world management training end up taking on significant leadership roles in games. Even more provocative was our finding that successful leadership in online games has less to do with the attributes of individual leaders than with the game environment, as created by the developer and enhanced by the gamers themselves. Furthermore, some characteristics of that environment—for example, immediate compensation for successful completion of a project with nonmonetary incentives, such as points for commitment and game performance—represent more than mere foreshadowing of how leadership might evolve.

Fortunately, of the article’s authors, Dr. O’Driscoll (now at Duke) has blogged extensively about the research behind the paper. You can find his most recent entry regarding what resulted in the HBR product here. A thorough write-up, with lots of links to articles, podcasts and work leading up to the findings can be found here.

Harvard Business School is no stranger to publishing research on video gaming and business applications. Beck and Wade published Got Game way back in 2004.

References:
Beck, J. C., & Wade, M. (2004). Got game: How the gamer generation is reshaping business forever. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Kirdahy, M. (2008). How online videogames can help groom biz leaders. [Online]. Available: http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=14721468

Reeves, B., Malone, T. W., & O’Driscoll, T. (2008, May). Leadership’s online labs. Harvard Business Review. [Online]. Available: http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/hbsp/hbr/articles/article.jsp;jsessionid=
3FGSKMZGNNJNSAKRGWDR5VQBKE0YIISW?ml_action=get-article&
articleID=R0805C&ml_page=1&ml_subscriber=true

Microsoft Offers DreamSpark Suite Free to Students; Includes XNA

Microsoft has jumped on the “free” bandwagon in the last few years. I remember when Dungeon Siege was opened to modders after the runaway success of Neverwinter Nights. Internet Explorer was eventually made free, as were several other products.

Now, PC World reports Microsoft is giving away tools for teaching programming to high schools and colleges. The DreamSpark program is to be unveiled today at Stanford, and will be available to 35 million students worldwide. I was not the least surprised at seeing XNA in the offering:

Software available to students through DreamSpark includes Microsoft’s development environment, Visual Studio 2005 Professional Edition, and its Web and graphic design toolset, the Expression Studio. Microsoft also is making available XNA Game Studio 2.0, SQL Server Developer Edition, Windows Server Standard Edition and other software and resources through the program.

Students who learn in the programs will probably more willing to continue coding in those programs after they join the workforce. This is a shot across the bow of Linux and other freely available open source products out there students might otherwise have been willing to turn to in order to get their feet wet programming.

According to Microsoft’s MSDN developer site, students will be able to download the complete suite. This is exciting news, and I know several tech directors in Texas will be looking forward to introducing the products in their tech ed programs.

Study: Male Brains are Wired for Games

Slashdot featured a story recently on a Stanford experiment by Allan Reiss (corresponding author) and colleagues at the Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research, where 11 females and 11 males played a videogame involving territorial competitiveness. Significant gender differences were uncovered in the experiment. The study found “there was a learning effect in that males showed a greater propensity for successfully gaining space [in the videogame] than females.” So performance-wise, men did better in the game, and learned to do it faster than the women.

But, even more interesting, the researchers performed MRI scans of the subjects’ brains. The MRI scans showed the male players had much higher activity in parts of the brain associated with pleasure and rewards. This, the researchers speculate, may help answer questions as to why certain games seem to induce overuse in male players. To wit: men may be more susceptible to gaming overuse since their brains process the information in a more stimulating manner. Guys get more fun out of playing certain games.

This study is interesting in that it touches on the easy to measure aspects of MRI scans, as well as gender differences. It provides some data showing evidence for differences in the processing of videogame activity among the genders, and ultimately may open the door for some interesting new research.

Here is the abstract:

Little is known about the underlying neural processes of playing computer/video games, despite the high prevalence of its gaming behavior, especially in males. In a functional magnetic resonance imaging study contrasting a space-infringement game with a control task, males showed greater activation and functional connectivity compared to females in the mesocorticolimbic system. These findings may be attributable to higher motivational states in males, as well as gender differences in reward prediction, learning reward values and cognitive state during computer video games. These gender differences may help explain why males are more attracted to, and more likely to become ‘‘hooked” on video games than females.

Here is the link to an online PDF of the article over at Stanford.

References:
Hoeft, F., Watson, C. L., Kesler, S. R., Bettinger, K. E., & Reiss, A. L. (In Press). Gender differences in the mesocorticolimbic system during computer game-play. Journal of Psychiatric Research.

Metaverse U at Stanford, Feb. 16-17

ANNOUNCEMENT: Metaverse U Conference at Stanford University
    * WHERE:
<http://ucomm.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/map/?q=Annenberg%20auditorium&sf=a.BLDG_NAME>Annenberg
Auditorium, Stanford University
    * WHEN: Saturday the 16th and Sunday the 17th of February 2008
    * WEBSITE: <http://metaverseu.stanford.edu/>http://metaverseu.stanford.edu

<http://shl.stanford.edu/>Stanford Humanities Lab
(SHL) is thrilled to announce the Metaverse U
conference at Stanford University. This two day
conference will be held on February 16th and 17th
2008 and feature speakers from a range of
disciplines spanning industry and academia. Our
lab has worked in virtual worlds for some years
now and have seen interest in the space grow
exponentially in recent years. We believe that
the time has come for an event to tell the
interesting stories from the evolving metaverse.
The current generation of spaces is part of a
larger historical picture and many lessons have
been learned over the years. Our ultimate goal
with Metaverse U is to create a broad
conversation about the pressing question of what the metaverse should be.

Metaverse U's list of speakers includes Raph
Koster (Metaplace), Brewster Kahle (The Internet
Archive), Jeremy Bailenson (Stanford University),
TL Taylor (The IT University of Copenhagen), Cory
Ondrejka, Tony Parisi (Media Machines & Web3D),
Jon Brouchoud (Wikitecture), Wm. LeRoy Heinrichs
(Stanford Medical Center), Rebecca Moore (Google
Earth), Parvati Dev (Innovation in Learning),
Byron Reeves (Stanford University & Seriosity),
Kari Kraus (University of Maryland), Christain
Renaud (Cisco), Mike Liebhold (Institute for the
future), Daniel Huebner (Doppelganger), Vladlen
Koltun (Stanford Virtual Worlds Group), Howard
Rheingold, Henry Lowood (Stanford University)

For more information please visit:
<http://metaverseu.stanford.edu/>http://metaverseu.stanford.edu

Registration is open at:
<http://metaverse.stanford.edu/registration/register-now>http://metaverse.stanford.edu/registration/register-now

CFP: Fourth Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (AIIDE '08)

Call for Papers

AIIDE'08
The Fourth Conference on
Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment
October 22-24, 2008
Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA

Submissions deadlines:
Papers and Industry Track abstracts due April 22, 2008
Extended abstracts for demonstrations due May 6, 2008

www.aiide.org <http://www.aiide.org/>

AIIDE'08 - the Fourth Conference on Artificial Intelligence and
Interactive Digital Entertainment - is intended to be the definitive
point of interaction between entertainment software developers
interested in AI and academic and industrial AI researchers. AIIDE'08
will include invited speakers, research and industry presentations,
project demonstrations, and product exhibits. While traditionally
emphasizing commercial computer and video games, we invite researchers
and developers to share their insights and cutting-edge results on all
topics at the interface of entertainment and artificial intelligence,
including serious games, entertainment robotics, and beyond. AIIDE'08 is
sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Artificial
Intelligence (AAAI).

PAPERS

Because AIIDE'08 crosses disciplinary boundaries, submissions will be
evaluated based on their accessibility to both commercial game
developers and researchers in addition to their technical merit.

Research Track
Research Track papers describe AI research results that make advances
towards solving known game AI problems or enabling a new form of
interactive digital entertainment. The novel technique should be
validated in a game prototype or test-bed, but need not be validated in
a commercial game. Research Track papers are evaluated by the highest
standards of academic rigor. The highest rated papers will be presented
in short lecture format. We hope to offer the next highest rated group
of papers the opportunity to present their work in a poster session.
Applicants submit a paper of no more than 6 pages in the AAAI format for
blind review (i.e. authors names and affiliations are omitted). All
papers will be allocated 6 pages in the proceedings regardless of
presentation format.

Industry Track
Individuals that have game development experience but lack the time or
need for publishing rigorous academic papers can alternatively apply to
the Industry Track. This track will include presentations of AI
techniques, issues, or case studies from the perspective of implementing
a product in the current commercial environment. Presentation proposals
will be evaluated on their potential for conveying clearly elaborated
ideas that have not been previously described to an adequate degree.
Industry Track applicants submit an extended abstract describing the
content of the proposed talk that also includes one paragraph describing
their game industry experience. An extended abstract of two pages is
sufficient, although any length up to that of a full paper (6 pages) is
acceptable. Abstracts will be published in the conference proceedings.

Example Topics (List is Suggestive Only)
- Novel Solutions for Traditional AI Problems (Path planning,
animation/camera control, tactical/strategic decision making, terrain
analysis, user modeling)
- AI Supporting Novel Game Concepts or Gameplay Elements  (Interactive
drama, narrative/character development, NPC coordination, NPC
belief/attitude/emotion modeling)
- AI Architectures for Games  (Automata, scripting, planning, level of
detail)
- AI Support for Game Production  (Game design, content creation,
testing)
- Other Entertainment Applications of AI Technologies (Robotics, natural
language processing, reinforcement learning, neural networks, Bayesian
networks, genetic algorithms, logic, rule based systems)
- Commercial AI Implementations (Case studies, implementation analysis,
comparative evaluations)

Submissions
Electronic submission of papers and extended abstracts is required. All
submissions must be in PDF format, no longer than 6 pages including
references, and formatted in AAAI two-column, camera-ready style (see
the author instructions page at
http://www.aaai.org/Publications/Author/author.php). Full submission
instructions will be available at the AIIDE web site (www.aiide.org
<http://www.aiide.org/> ) after March 15, 2008. Research Track papers
and Industry Track extended abstracts must be submitted by April 22,
2008. All accepted papers and extended abstracts will be published in
the conference proceedings. At least one author must register for the
conference by the deadline for camera-ready copy submission. As AIIDE is
an academic conference, all attendees including presenters pay a
registration fee. AIIDE'08 will not accept any paper that, at the time
of submission, is under review for or has already been published or
accepted for publication in another journal or conference.

DEMONSTRATIONS

We invite researchers and practitioners to share insights and
cutting-edge results from a wide range of topics and encourage the
demonstration of a) research systems in the context of existing
commercial games, b) new games authored by researchers, c) contributions
demonstrating the adoption and/or extension of AI research results
published games, and d) completely new forms of interactive digital
entertainment made possible by AI research. An electronic submission of
a 2-page abstract and demonstration materials is required. Demonstration
materials can take the form of a recorded demonstration session, an
executable version of the demonstration with written instructions, or a
detailed description of the demonstration heavily illustrated with
screenshots. Please note that these materials are for review only; it is
hoped that all demonstrations will be conducted live at AIIDE'08.
Demonstration materials can be submitted electronically by email or FTP
up-load. Demonstration authors should submit abstracts and materials by
May 6, 2008. Submissions will be judged on technical merit,
accessibility to developers and researchers, originality, presentation,
and significance. Demonstration abstracts will be published in the
conference proceedings.

EXHIBITS

AIIDE'08 will have exhibit space available. Companies, publishers and
other groups are encouraged to consider purchasing either a table top
display or an exhibit booth. Exhibit space is limited and will be
allocated on a first come, first serve basis. Please contact AAAI at
aiide08@aaai.org for more information.

IMPORTANT DATES

- March-April: Authors register on the AIIDE web site
- April 22, 2008: Electronic submission of  Research/Industry Track
papers/abstracts
- May 6, 2008: Electronic submission of extended abstract for a
demonstration
- June 11, 2008: Notification of acceptance decision

PUBLICATION

All accepted papers and abstracts will be allocated six (6) pages in the
conference proceedings. Up to two (2) additional pages may be used at a
cost to the authors of US$ 275 per page. Authors will be required to
transfer copyright of their paper to AAAI.

CONFERENCE CHAIR
Michael Mateas
University of California, Santa Cruz

PROGRAM CHAIR
Chris Darken
Naval Postgraduate School

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Ruth Aylett (Heriot-Watt University, UK), Kevin Dill (Mad Doc Software),
Richard Evans (Maxis), Ana Paiva (Technical University of Lisbon,
Portugal), Michael Youngblood (University of North Carolina, Charlotte),
Robert Zubek (Three Rings Design)

For additional information, please see www.aiide.org
<http://www.aiide.org/>  or email the conference organizers at
aiide08 at aaai.org.