Grand Theft a Joy for Gamers

There was more to electronics show than TVs

(NEWSER) - This year's Consumer Electronics Show had the predictable high-tech TVs and other conventional items—but the 3,100 exhibitors also showed off some rather bizarre devices. A few highlights:

• Solowheel. An electric unicycle with no seat and footboards that allow riders to stand and lean in the direction they want to go. The 26-pound, $1,800 machine goes 10mph on its battery-powered motor, and has a 15- to 20-mile range.

When you're done, don't forget to tweet your score!

(NEWSER) - It’s such a drag when you have to press pause on your fun night out in order to go to the bathroom—but one London bar has solved that problem by installing the world’s first urine-controlled video games in its bathroom. Only male patrons can play so far, as the games are over the urinals in the Exhibit Bar. After you play, you can—of course!—tweet your score, the Telegraph notes. More»

Researchers unsure whether it's pre-existing or games change brains

(NEWSER) - This is your brain on videogames: The brains of hardcore gamers are wired differently than those who rarely play video games, according to a new study. Researchers who scanned the brains of more than 150 14-year-olds found that the brain's "reward hub"—which plays a role in addiction—was bigger in frequent gamers, as it is in gambling addicts, the Los Angeles Times reports. The researchers couldn't determine whether gaming changed the brain, or whether having a certain brain structure made people likelier to enjoy gaming. More»

Video games, Botox, coffee could all help more than they hurt

(NEWSER) - Bad habits are admittedly, well ... bad for you, unless you have an ailment that a bad habit might cure. Cracked sums up five:

• Video Games That Cure PTSD. "No, this isn't taken from some press release from Activision"—it's the result of work by the Department of Defense. "It's called virtual reality exposure therapy, and it forces subjects to relive the traumatic experiences" by replaying them in a video game.

'They did it in less than 10 days': scientist

(NEWSER) - Video gamers have figured out a molecular puzzle that has long baffled scientists and may lead to crowd-sourced cures for AIDS and other illnesses, MSNBC reports. In a surprising step for so-called citizen science, players of the online game Foldit discovered the molecular structure of an enzyme in an AIDS-like virus found in monkeys. All it took was 12-15 dedicated gamers. "They actually did it in less than 10 days," says biochemist Firas Khatib. More»