Re: SV: [xmca] Test (and some play and games)

From: steve thorne (sthorne@psu.edu)
Date: Wed Feb 08 2006 - 12:56:46 PST


hi Patrick (and all) -- welcome. just a few quick
questions/thoughts -- and you may be the ideal
person to field them!

i'm curious -- what sorts of gaming environments
might you be working on? for instance, do you
look at massive multiplayer online games (MMOGS)?
like earlier virtual environments and role
playing games (MOOs and Muds for example), these
newer spaces are quite interesting and dynamic.
and immense. many are international and
multilingual. some have internal economies that
interface with hard currency capital on the
outside (for instance, Worlds of War).

so, the question i'm wondering about is -- what's
going on in these spaces? is it "play" or
something else? researchers of
internet-mediated/enabled environments have
problematized rigid distinctions between on and
off-line social ontologies for a decade now.
conceptions of human activity as play or not play
is similarly a tricky taxonomy.

i'd welcome any insights or references you (or
others) might have regarding any of the above.

cheers,

steve

>Since I am completely new to the list, I have probably missed all the highly
>interesting discussions on the role of play and games for the development of
>our minds and souls, but if someone here has any great insight they are
>willing to share, I am all ears.
>
>What I have found somewhat confusing/lacking is that most theorists talk
>only about the role of play when we are kids (in relation to zpd, etc.), but
>what I wonder is what happens to play and games when we are grown ups. I
>truly believe play and games can have a substantial role in the lives of
>people today. As the highly materialistic and modernized world (or
>post-modern, post-post modern, etc.) asks a higher price of us for each
>year, more and more people play online games. Is this only to flee the
>thought that life is a veil of tears and nothing more, or is there also
>something else to it? Something more substantial, something that actually
>contributes to the lives of adult humans today?
>
>As stated, it might be that I have missed all the wonderful writings on the
>role of play and games in adult's lives from a sociocultural viewpoint, and
>then I am sorry for this. Otherwise, it would be interesting to hear what
>you have to say.
>
>Patrik Bergman
>PhD student in games and education
>
>
>-----Ursprungligt meddelande-----
>Från: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu] För
>Michael Erickson
>Skickat: den 8 februari 2006 15:24
>Till: Xmca'ers
>Ämne: [xmca] Test
>
>Either it's been very quiet, or I've been bumped off the list.
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-- 
Steven L. Thorne
Assistant Professor of Applied Linguistics
Linguistics and Applied Language Studies
Associate Director, Center for Language Acquisition
Associate Director, Center for Advanced Language 
Proficiency Education and Research
The Pennsylvania State University
Interact > 814.863.7036 | sthorne@psu.edu | 
http://language.la.psu.edu/~thorne/ | IM: avkrook
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