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Of health and gaming

One of my clients sent me this and I thought there may be someone who reads it here that may be interested:

My name is Susan Promislo and I am the communications officer for the Pioneer Portfolio of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Pioneer Portfolio supports innovative projects and ideas that may spur breakthrough improvements in the future of health and health care. One area we have increasingly been exploring is the connection between gaming and game technologies and health and health care — we recently launched a new national program to support research and analysis in this emerging area.

Health Games Research is an $8.25 million RWJF national program that supports outstanding research to enhance the quality and impact of interactive games used to improve health. The goal of the program is to advance the innovation, design, and effectiveness of health games and game technologies so that they help people improve their health-related behaviors and, as a result, achieve significantly better health outcomes.

Health Games Research is led by Dr. Debra Lieberman of the University of California, Santa Barbara and it has issued its first call for proposals – I have provided a summary of the program and current funding opportunity from Dr. Lieberman below. The application deadline is Jan. 29 and we’re hoping to stimulate as many high-quality proposals as possible; up to $2 million will be made in research grants during this round, and a second round of funding will be available in late 2008. I was hoping you might be willing to share word of this new program and CFP among members of the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research.

Please let me know if I can provide any additional information. I would be most grateful for any help you could provide in sharing this via ABMR networks and/or any other channels you think are appropriate.

Best wishes for a wonderful 2008, and sincere thanks for your assistance.

*******************************************

Susan Promislo
Communications Officer
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
609.627.7638
spromislo@rwjf.org

*******************************************

HEALTH GAMES RESEARCH

By now, I hope you have seen the announcement of the Health Games Research national program http://www.healthgamesresearch.org generously funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Pioneer Portfolio. The program offers researchers from many fields and disciplines a great opportunity to conduct research in this emerging field, both to advance the design and effectiveness of health games and to provide an evidence base for decision-makers who buy, use, recommend, produce, or fund health games.

Here’s the Call for Proposals

http://www.rwjf.org/applications/solicited/cfp.jsp?ID=20001

for up to $200,000 in research funding. In two rounds of funding, the program will award up to $2 million in 2008 and also up to $2 million in 2009. Proposals for the first round are due January 29, 2008 (3:00 p.m. EST). The Call for Proposals provides details about eligibility and research areas.

On the web site http://www.healthgamesresearch.org you can (1) access the Call for Proposals, (2) read FAQs, (3) register for our applicant web conferences on December 13 (where we will present information about the grants program and answer questions), and (4) apply for a grant.

If the program’s web site, Call for Proposals, FAQs, and web conferences don’t answer your questions, you may submit questions to healthgamesresearch@rwjf.org and your e-mail will be forwarded to the appropriate staff member, who will send you answers.

Health Games Research has a national program office, which Dr. Debra Lieberman directs at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The RWJF funding will continue for 4.5 years until 2012. In addition to managing the grants program, the national program office at UCSB will develop a searchable online database of publications, research findings, organizations, experts, technologies, games, and other resources of interest to the field. Staff will also conduct studies of health games, create research tools, and issue reports and research briefs to summarize work in this field. And, they will work to convey the field’s research findings to a wide audience of decision-makers in medicine, health promotion, game publishing, technology and software, policymaking, government, academe, K-12 education, community leadership, etc., as well as invite and facilitate their participation, support, and research collaboration.

Games for Health http://www.gamesforhealth.org, led by Ben Sawyer, has also received funding from RWJF to work as a partner with the Health Games Research program to help build the field. Ben will convene regional and national meetings such as the popular annual Games for Health Conference, lead competitions, and lead online and offline forums to strengthen ties between the worlds of game development and health care. He will continue working to encourage and facilitate the development of high quality, well designed health games, bringing people and groups together and helping them find resources and opportunities.

Ben has already done so much to build the field, and this funding will help him boost and expand this great work.

For further information from RWJF about funding calls, publications, and news, you can sign up here http://www.rwjf.org/services/ to receive e-mail alerts.

I hope you will take a look at the Call for Proposals and, if eligible, consider submitting an application to Health Games Research in January.

Thanks!

On their website, I found the following key dates and deadlines:

• December 7, 2007 (3:00 p.m. EST) and December 13, 2007 (4:00 p.m. EST)—Applicant Web conference calls (optional). To register, please click on the registration link found in the right-hand column.
• January 29, 2008 (3:00 p.m. EST)—Deadline for receipt of proposals.
• May 1, 2008—Grant start date.
• May 6 – 7, 2008—Program annual meeting for grantees only, Baltimore, Maryland
• May 8 – 9, 2008—Games for Health Conference, Baltimore, Maryland

I’ve read my fair share of articles and previous studies of “good gaming” — or cases where gaming benefits the player in physical and/or mental aspects. Lord knows I’ve posted my fair share over at BYKYC.

It’s good to see that many of these studies are continuing!

Games, and Gaming

Had a great time at the FSU game, though was a bit dismayed to find that my Utterz posts weren’t going through. (still figuring that out) Had other technical difficulties: I found that my camera’s rechargeable batteries have pretty much gone kaput … so most of the pics I took were on my Helio Ocean. (Have GOT to get me a new camera!) We got in late Sunday afternoon, picked Jessie up from her mother’s, then pretty much crashed. I’ve been having headaches the last couple of days (first ones since the wedding, really), so I took it easy yesterday — outside of doing a little “shopping.”

Jim and I had decided instead of giving “traditional” wedding gifts to each other, we’re upgrading our machines. After all, UT3 is due out in just a couple of weeks!

Jim’s pretty much got his stuff picked out and we’ve started ordering parts, but I decided to “go lighter” … I’m getting a laptop and will be shedding my box. (Shocked, I know! )

I still love my alien green case, but I decided that for the amount of money we’d be shelling out, I could get just as decent a machine as a laptop — and a laptop is mobile. I’d be able to cart it with me where needed and it would make my load MUCH lighter when packing up for LAN parties!

I have *SO* missed my LAN parties, and let’s face it, PCs are heavy!

Now that a new UT is coming out, I’m itching for some FPS action. I’ve been eying this beauty on NewEgg:

ASUS F3 Series F3SV-X1 NoteBook Intel Core 2 Duo T7300(2.00GHz) 15.4″ Wide XGA 1GB DDR2 667 160GB 5400rpm DVD Super Multi NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GS

The graphics card is decent enough for some medium/high gaming and design/dev works, but I’ll have to double up on the RAM as it will be running Vista. (and we all know how MS OS’s like to suck up memory!)

I’ve been playing the UT3 demo in my spare time (or what little I’ve had, LOL!) and can’t WAIT until the real thing hits! :twisted:

UT3′s Specs:

Minimum System Requirements

• Windows XP SP2 or Windows Vista
• 2.0+ GHZ Single Core Processor
• 512 Mbytes of System RAM
• NVIDIA 6200+ or ATI Radeon 9600+ Video Card
• 8 GB of Free Hard Drive Space

Recommended System Requirements

• 2.4+ GHZ Dual Core Processor
• 1 GBytes of System RAM
• NVIDIA 7800GTX+ or ATI x1300+ Video Card
• 8 GB of Free Hard Drive Space

I wish I still had mine!

One of the things I’ve come to regret over the last few years is getting rid of my old NES system. When I first bought my home, I basically threw out anything that wasn’t “absolutely necessary” … among the things abandoned was my Nintendo game system and all the controllers.

This makes me wish I had kept it! :cry:

I *so* want one of these!

Featured on Geekologie today:

These simple LED lamps are made by a company out of Hong Kong. Don’t you think it looks just like the mushrooms from the Super Mario Bros. series?

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!! I want one! :mrgreen:

Too bad they won’t make me taller or grant an extra life!

Isn’t this cute?

I ran across this on Geekologie. It’s called Statetris. It’s a flash-based tetris clone, except that you are placing the US states in a map instead of blocks.

A great way to learn US geography, I think! I played a couple of rounds and it’s pretty fun. I plan on letting Jessie play on my box at home (as she’s not allowed on the net on her own computer), and she always needs help with which states are where. :grin:

Japan gets all the good stuff

I ran across this gem on the girl gamers LJ:

I’m sure I just made somebody’s day

I decided to close my Neopets account. In the course of 20 minutes, I’ve squandered about 3 million Neopoints and am in the process now of cleaning out my NP Safety Deposit box. Looking for a way to get rid of the virtual funds quickly, I loaded up on expensive items and donated them to the Money Tree:

I’m sure some poor n00b or two just had a heart attack, LOL!

Mother’s Day is coming up

Just in case any of you are looking for a new addiction to give yourself or your favorite mother for Mother’s Day.

(x-posted to BYKYC)

Popcap games is offering their popular Bejeweled Deluxe for free in celebration for Mother’s day. Starting tomorrow through May 23rd, people can subscribe to the Popcap newsletter here: www.popcap.com. When you subscribe you get a pass code for a free full version download of Bejeweled Deluxe.

“Moms, grandmothers, and women in general have supported PopCap in many significant ways since we founded the company in 2000,” noted Jason Kapalka, co-founder and Chief Creative Officer at PopCap. “We wanted to repay that generosity in some fashion, and giving away free copies of the game that launched our success seemed like a fun way to do that.”

“A free copy of Bejeweled for Mother’s Day sounds wonderful to me,” said Michele Lewis, a busy mother of four who home-schools all of her children, age 9 to 13. “From Bookworm to Zuma, I love playing the PopCap games – either with my children or by myself when I find those precious few minutes of ‘me time’!”

So if you haven’t bought your mom a gift yet, think about exposing her to gaming with Bejeweled. Just be careful, I know I found that game really addictive.

Source

I dunno about any of you, but Jessie got me hooked on their Chuzzle Deluxe game. “Santa” had put that in her stocking a couple of years ago (it came with an adorable Tribble-looking puff with googley eyes) and I helped her figure out how to play it, and I now play it more than she does! LOL

Attn: B’ham Wii seekers!

CostCo, located outside of the Riverchase Galleria had two palettes full of Wii’s tonight when Jim and I were there! $329.99, includes Wii Sports, also comes with Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and an extra remote controller.

Add to my “I want!!!” list …

Smurfed from Geekologie :mrgreen:

Smart Cookie Fortune Ball

Smart Cookie combines the ancient wisdom of the Orient with a splash of a wiseass attitude. Some of its answers…

• Future sticky like rice
• You don’t wonton know
• Answer sweet and sour
• Don’t mock the cookie
• Try the eggroll
• Cookie busy – try later

There are 21 inscrutable messages in all. So put YOUR life’s major decisions in the hands of the cookie!

The only thing I can think of that would make it perfect would be some computer memory or maybe flash memory so you could add your own responses! :twisted:

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