Now that everybody’s going back to school, you’re probably going to have to endure boring courses and lectures about things you will never actually use in real life. But at Wabash College in Indiana (US), freshmen get to play Portal as a class assignment.

The Nintendo Wii has proven useful in the past in different areas aside from video games and entertainment. Its motion controllers and friendly interface have made it a surprisingly effective tool for rehabilitation and Wii Fit has managed to push people of all ages off the couch. In another surprising use for Nintendo’s console, sports medicine may be benefited in one its most important areas. The treatment of sports injuries.

The average gamer supposedly consists of young adult males ages 18-34, but a recent report by research firm M2 indicates that children, particularly in the “tween” category, are increasingly playing. The report defined tweens as children ages 8-11, while teens were defined as children ages 12-15.

As time passes and computer power increases, more and more tasks are performed by machines. A computer’s ability to do huge calculations in no time and also to perform with precision time and time again make them ideal for a number of areas where humans wouldn’t be up to the task. Even though we are clearly surpassed in certain situations, the human mind is still an awesome tool which can perform with amazing results in certain situations

One of these situations has been adapted into a game and is already proving a huge success.

The game is called Foldit and it deals with the internal structure of proteins, some of the most important building blocks of life. The game was developed at the University of Washington (US) and in it, players try to solve different puzzles that represent how a real protein molecule would behave. By manipulating the structure of these molecules, players earn points for discovering stable configurations.

Computed tomography or CT scan is one of the most useful tools medicine has today. It allows doctors to look inside out bodies without having to cut them open. One of the latest uses of this technology is a process called Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT) which greatly improves the accuracy of traditional radiation therapy. Unfortunately, IGRT also presented some risks but now, technology originally designed for video games is helping improve this life saving technology.

The videogame world is in a constant state of change and for many of the latest games no console is required. Even with a wildly popular item such as the Nintendo Wii, there are millions of people with no interest in console gaming. In contrast, cellphones are becoming a fixture in society.

A study from the Pew Research Center said the number of people playing games on their phones is now at 34 percent of US cell owners.

We hear a lot about how TV and video games are supposedly turning young people into vegetables. At least one recent study suggests just the opposite is true.

A study conducted by students at French business school ESSEC found that 38 percent of boys surveyed who play sports video games played the same sport in real life.

Not only that but high school coaches are incorporating games such as Madden NFL into their list of learning tools.

Somewhere, Panasonic and Sony executives are sticking their fingers in their ears and making those “La La La, I can’t hear you” noises at the results of a Japanese consumer survey. A survey by Japanese price comparison website Kakaku indicated that nearly 70 percent of its respondents are not planning to buy a 3D TV.

It seems a large number of gamers are taking an “online pass” on THQ’s UFC Undisputed sequel.

Lazard Capital Markets analyst Colin Sebastian has released his research saying that sales of UFC Undisputed 2010 are below expectations. THQ’s take on the popular MMA genre was one of the surprise hits of 2009, selling nearly 4 million copies.

If you are playing the EA Sports Active games on your Wii, you may be satisfying the American College of Sports Medicine‘s (ACSM) guidelines for an active lifestyle.

A study released on June 2, 2010, conducted by Dr. John Porcari of the University of Wisconsin concluded that these games passed the fitness guidelines of ACSM.

ACSM recommends…