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Virtual Bike Unveiled

Fri, 23 May 2008
by: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it | source: BBC | thanks: England

Motorcycle simulator aims to promote safety

A new motorcycle simulator, created by Dr Alex Stedmon of the University of Nottingham, has been designed to monitor rider behaviour and safety - not for fun times.

GO FASTER....oh wait...

"...the machine was the first of its kind, combining elements not seen in previous simulators.

Dr Stedmon said: "It is going to be a fantastic research facility for us.

"It's the first full-sized, moveable simulator that's linked to a projection screen and reconfigurable software.

- BBC.co.uk

Don't expect to see this in your local arcade any time soon. It's for educational purposes only, as a groups of students will be working on it to make it more realistic.

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Game Consoles Are Toxic

Fri, 23 May 2008
by: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it | source: SMH | thanks: Captain Planet

Harmful chemicals found in Nintendo Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360

Watch out, Radioactive Man!

Greenpeace have found that the Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 all contain high levels of toxic chemicals but say this won't affect any of their users...for now.

"Greenpeace acknowledged the level of toxic material does not violate European regulations, although some are banned from use in toys meant for small children. Though not harmful in the amounts used, some chemicals are released into household dust, inhaled and pile up in the body over time.

"Nobody will drop dead tomorrow," Greenpeace campaigner Zeina AlHajj said today. "But these products are used by kids ... They are persistent and they are accumulating through our life." "

- smh.com.au

Apparently the machines are most dangerous when they are thrown away. Their are plans for major electronics companies to reduce hazardous components in their consoles.

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Penny Arcade Game Goes Live

Thurs, 22 May 2008
by: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it | source: IGN | thanks: The wide world of webcomics

The Tube is Civilisation!

Less cluing, more doing

The first instalment of Penny Arcade Adventures: The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, is now available for download.

Demo versions can be downloaded via Xbox Live, or from the Greenhouse website, for Windows, Mac and Linux platforms.

On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is an episodic RPG-Adventure game set in a deranged comic-book-meets-pulp-horror universe. Armed with unconventional weaponry, you join forces with the Startling Developments Detective Agency to make war on bizarre enemies and solve the mysteries hidden deep in the sinister heart of New Arcadia.

- Game Official Website

The demo versions can be upgraded to the full version. Doing so, however, will set you back US$20.

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Thompson accused of Rule Violations

Wed, 14 May 2008
by: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it | source: Law.com | thanks: Lawyers attacking other lawyers

Jack Thompson gets pwned

Deep down, Jack really wishes he was playing this...

US lawyer Jack Thompson, known for his criticism of violence in video games, has been found guilty of several Florida Bar rule violations.

Judge Dava Tunis, the referee assigned to this case, found he had violated 27 rules, including making false statements to tribunals, improperly practising law outside Florida, and also humiliating litigants and other lawyers.

Thompson filed a motion Tuesday with the Florida Supreme Court to strike Tunis' recommendations as vague for lack of detail.

"I'm going into this blind," said Thompson, a crusader against pornography and violent video games. "She should have issued her report at least to her findings and then have a sanction hearing."

- Law.com

This retaliation comes after the Judge apparently failed to go into detail on how she came to her conclusions, or indeed without entering specifics regarding the alleged violations themselves.

A sanctions hearing on the matter is scheduled to take place on June the 4th.

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Cool School: A Battle Between War and Peace

Wed, 21 May 2008
by: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it | source: Ars technica | thanks: talking desks and books

War always wins

This is what we�re up against

Cool School, an educational game based on peaceful conflict resolution has received �rave reviews� from testers. Development of the game started then Congress allocated funding to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, to create the video game.

The idea was to share the game throughout schools in the US, until recently when the funding was cut. Ars technica says that the game was developed in response to the recent release of GTA4, a game that encourages violence, if anything.

�Cool School focuses on taking players through a school where just about everything (desks, books, and other objects) are alive and have their own personality. �The primary goal of the game is to teach students how to solve social conflict through skills like negotiation and cooperation.�

- Ars technica

Cool School is now available as a free download for both Mac OS X and Windows XP.

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