too. Remember," he said, warming to his topic, "when you are given access to something powerful, you have a responsibility to use it well. The more power, the more responsibility. And I think we can all agree that one of the most powerful tools ever made is the computer and the other machines associated with it. We have to think about our responsibilities in using it well. And I’m not just talking about porn."
"What else?" asked Dallas, raptly attentive.
John paused. He liked to wait for several seconds after such shouted questions. Often the other students would rise to the challenge and begin an interesting discussion. No takers this time, though, so after a moment John continued speaking. "How about video games?" he asked. The class continued to stare at him in that semi-blank way that students did when they weren’t thinking; when they hadn’t been kick-started into thinking. John was losing his audience. He had to get more participation.
"Does anyone know what the first video game was?" he asked.
One of the kids raised a hand. "Pac Man?" A few more shouted answers rang out as each student tried to guess the answer.
John let the guesses continue for a time, then shook his head. "Good guesses, but wrong. The first video game was called Pong. There were two lines and a ball that bounced back and forth between them. That’s it. Nothing else."
"Booooring," drawled Dallas, his voice sounding like a foghorn as he drew out the vowel. The class laughed again, and Dallas clasped his hands over his head and shook them in victory.
Geez, thought John, he’s coming along great!
Aloud, he said, "Thank you for that compelling gamer review, Mr. Dallas." Another round of laughs. "So who of you plays video games now?"
Three quarters of the hands in the class went up.
"What are some video games you like?"
The words came quickly, a shouted chorus of the newest titles.
"Duke Nuke ‘Em."
"Tomb Raider."
"Double-0 Seven."
"Metal Gear Solid."
"Resident Evil."
John waited until everyone had made a contribution, then held out his hands for silence. Immediately the students quieted, waiting for his point. "Good list there, ladies and gentlemen. Now, consider: in recent years, a major selling point for new systems is how life-like they can make their games. How real are they? How many pixels calculated per second? How fast?"
He stopped a moment, then turned to a young lady named Jerianne, a sallow-faced girl who wasn’t interested in speaking much. John called on her a lot for that very reason, trying to include her and encourage her. Some students needed to be held back a bit, to be reigned in and corralled. Others needed someone to set them free.
"What do you think, Ms. Halley?
"Huh?"
"How fast are games now?"
"Dunno."
"They’re making games that perform over six billion pixel calculations per second. That’s more than enough to make exceptionally realistic games. Cartoon-like, or even life-like."
A few of the students nodded, and John smiled inwardly. They were starting to focus on what he was saying.
"So here’s a question, or maybe just a thought: when a five-year old played Pong, what was he doing?"
Silence. Then Jerianne answered.
"Playing a video game."
The class snickered again, but John silenced them quickly. "No, don’t laugh. That’s exactly right. He - or she - was playing a game. But now, when a five year old plays one of the modern breed of games, what is that child doing?"
"Playing a game," someone said. John shook his head slightly.
The class waited, then finally Dallas spoke. The kid was smart, and he gave the answer that was so simple it sounded stupid...which of course was why John wanted someone to say it.
"He’s making decisions."
"What?" asked John.
"He’s making life-and-death decisions."
Someone hummed Darth Vader music. More snickers. John chuckled, too, but his eyes were
"What else?" asked Dallas, raptly attentive.
John paused. He liked to wait for several seconds after such shouted questions. Often the other students would rise to the challenge and begin an interesting discussion. No takers this time, though, so after a moment John continued speaking. "How about video games?" he asked. The class continued to stare at him in that semi-blank way that students did when they weren’t thinking; when they hadn’t been kick-started into thinking. John was losing his audience. He had to get more participation.
"Does anyone know what the first video game was?" he asked.
One of the kids raised a hand. "Pac Man?" A few more shouted answers rang out as each student tried to guess the answer.
John let the guesses continue for a time, then shook his head. "Good guesses, but wrong. The first video game was called Pong. There were two lines and a ball that bounced back and forth between them. That’s it. Nothing else."
"Booooring," drawled Dallas, his voice sounding like a foghorn as he drew out the vowel. The class laughed again, and Dallas clasped his hands over his head and shook them in victory.
Geez, thought John, he’s coming along great!
Aloud, he said, "Thank you for that compelling gamer review, Mr. Dallas." Another round of laughs. "So who of you plays video games now?"
Three quarters of the hands in the class went up.
"What are some video games you like?"
The words came quickly, a shouted chorus of the newest titles.
"Duke Nuke ‘Em."
"Tomb Raider."
"Double-0 Seven."
"Metal Gear Solid."
"Resident Evil."
John waited until everyone had made a contribution, then held out his hands for silence. Immediately the students quieted, waiting for his point. "Good list there, ladies and gentlemen. Now, consider: in recent years, a major selling point for new systems is how life-like they can make their games. How real are they? How many pixels calculated per second? How fast?"
He stopped a moment, then turned to a young lady named Jerianne, a sallow-faced girl who wasn’t interested in speaking much. John called on her a lot for that very reason, trying to include her and encourage her. Some students needed to be held back a bit, to be reigned in and corralled. Others needed someone to set them free.
"What do you think, Ms. Halley?
"Huh?"
"How fast are games now?"
"Dunno."
"They’re making games that perform over six billion pixel calculations per second. That’s more than enough to make exceptionally realistic games. Cartoon-like, or even life-like."
A few of the students nodded, and John smiled inwardly. They were starting to focus on what he was saying.
"So here’s a question, or maybe just a thought: when a five-year old played Pong, what was he doing?"
Silence. Then Jerianne answered.
"Playing a video game."
The class snickered again, but John silenced them quickly. "No, don’t laugh. That’s exactly right. He - or she - was playing a game. But now, when a five year old plays one of the modern breed of games, what is that child doing?"
"Playing a game," someone said. John shook his head slightly.
The class waited, then finally Dallas spoke. The kid was smart, and he gave the answer that was so simple it sounded stupid...which of course was why John wanted someone to say it.
"He’s making decisions."
"What?" asked John.
"He’s making life-and-death decisions."
Someone hummed Darth Vader music. More snickers. John chuckled, too, but his eyes were
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