Playing fast action video games, including first-person shooter games can boost ones’ ability to perceive subtle differences in shades of gray.

Contrast sensitivity like this is the primary factor that determines how well a person can see.

Daphne Bavelier and colleagues at the University of Rochester and the Eye Institute at Tel Aviv University probably had no problem rounding up 22 young adult volunteers for her study of these matters.

After assessing the participants’ visual contrast sensitivity, the scientists randomized them into 2 groups and asked them to play assigned video games for 50 hours during a 9 week intervention.

The test group played 2 action video games, “Unreal Tournament 2004″ and “Call of Duty 2.” Controls played “The Sims 2″ which was visually complex, but had a slower pace and did not require precise, visually guided aiming activity.

After the volunteers had skipped the light fandango and turned cartwheels ‘cross the floor for 9 weeks, action game players were found to have improved by 43% their ability to discern between shades of pale. There was no change in the Sims group.

 “Normally, improving contrast sensitivity means getting glasses or eye surgery—somehow changing the optics of the eye,” Bavelier told BurrillReport. “But we’ve found that action video games train the brain to process the existing visual information more efficiently.”

The improvements held true for 2 years after the “training” had ended. The write-up is in Nature Neuroscience.
 
The scientists’ findings extended Bavelier’s earlier research showing that action video games reduce visual crowding and increase visual attention.

They concluded that action video game training may complement standard eye-correction techniques by teaching the visual cortex to better use the information it receives.

Scouting video on the Big O confirms he doesn’t just lean left politically.

Interestingly though, 5 of the last 7 presidents have been left-handed including Ford, Reagan, Bush the semi-reasonable, Clinton and Obama. Only Carter and Bush II went right.

That seems odd given that only 10% of humans are lefties, but it’s probably just a statistical fluke.

Even if it wasn’t, no one knows whether or how left-handedness impacts factors that drive electoral success like political skill, smarts, charisma, appearance, insider connections, and wealth. 

And before lefties start popping their collars, they’d be well to remember they’re at increased risk of accidental death not to mention a possibly increased risk for some psychiatric diseases. 

It’s not clear why some people become left-handed, although genes are clearly involved. About one-quarter of the sons of left-handed parents are left-handed, whereas only 10% of boys who have right-handed parents end up as southpaws.

But genes aren’t the whole story since 20% of identical twins have different handedness.

Non genetic effects on handedness can be demonstrated in chickens, in whom brain lateralization is driven by light penetrating the shell during incubation.

In most chick embryos, the right eye is exposed to light. These chickens end up being more adept at identifying food and prey with their right eye, and are better able to detect predators and potential mates with their left eye.

If the eggs are incubated in darkness however, the resulting adults don’t lateralize this way.