Search results for ""Author Pete Etchells""

''A welcome counterpoint to the technopanic that screen time is causing a mental health crisis'' Bruce Hood''A rare mix of trustworthy science, practical advice, and human stories ... I''m going to recommend it to all the parents I know, and keep it handy for reference next time I see a scary headline about how technology is ruining our lives'' Timandra Harkness''Punctures some of the most pernicious myths about our smartphone and screen-dominated lives, while offering good advice about how to improve the time we spend with screens ... a must-read'' New ScientistMost of us spend a significant part of the day in front of a screen. Our work and social lives play out through our computers, tablets and phones: on email, social media, video conference calls and gaming servers. But what is all this screen time doing to our health, our sleep, and our relationships?Professor Pete Etchells studies the way we use screens, and how the

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'Etchells writes eloquently ... A heartfelt defence of a demonised pastime' The Times'Once in an age, a piece of culture comes along that feels like it was specifically created for you, the beats and words and ideas are there because it is your life the creator is describing. Lost In A Good Game is exactly that. It will touch your heart and mind. And even if Bowser, Chun-li or Q-Bert weren't crucial parts of your youth, this is a flawless victory for everyone' Adam RutherfordWhen Pete Etchells was 14, his father died from motor neurone disease. In order to cope, he immersed himself in a virtual world - first as an escape, but later to try to understand what had happened. Etchells is now a researcher into the psychological effects of video games, and was co-author on a recent paper explaining why WHO plans to classify 'game addiction' as a danger to public health are based on bad science and (he thinks) are a bad idea.In this, his first book, he journeys through the history and development of video games - from Turing's chess machine to mass multiplayer online games like World of Warcraft- via scientific study, to investigate the highs and lows of playing and get to the bottom of our relationship with games - why we do it, and what they really mean to us.At the same time, Lost in a Good Game is a very unusual memoir of a writer coming to terms with his grief via virtual worlds, as he tries to work out what area of popular culture we should classify games (a relatively new technology) under.

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