Tag: humanity

Gaming: Humanity’s Future

I believe that games will empower humanity in inconceivable ways.

I’ll explain. Human motivators (beyond the basics of food, shelter, etc.) can be classified into 6 fundamental needs:

  • Certainty: predictability, knowable outcomes, and sense of control
  • Variety: exposure to a diverse range of experiences
  • Significance: the desire to be known and respected
  • Connection: social ties to, and interaction with, fellow human beings
  • Growth: feeling a sense of progress and improvement over time
  • Contribution: knowing that actions have an impact on the wider world

Different people have different ways of prioritizing these needs, but we all must satisfy these needs to some degree to become properly fulfilled. It has been shown that a person’s behavior, whether positive or negative, can become a habit if it satisfies just 2-3 of these needs.

Great games can satisfy all 6. No wonder we get addicted to them. For instance, games satisfy the fundamental needs in the following ways, respectively:

  • Understandable and predictable game mechanics
  • Varied challenges, bosses, items, stages, maps, etc.
  • Gaming worlds are directly influenced by the player’s actions
  • Multiplayer, social components, or even just interacting with in-game characters
  • Leveling up, increasing stats, new equipment, collectible achievements, etc.
  • Being a hero, helping your team members, filling a party’s role

Farmville, World of Warcraft, Halo, Words With Friends, and many others have all of these needs covered. It’s scary how intensely motivated people get with games. Players of these games dive into them full-tilt in a way that would never happen in their normal lives.

I’ll repeat: I believe that the future of human activity, enabled by technology, will be ruled by games. Augmented reality glasses — the next evolution of our current smartphones — will constantly display the “in-game” stats and improved environmental renderings relevant to your current “game.” Artificial intelligence will be on the alert for gamifying actions beneficial to our lives. Projects will be completed and rewarded like quests, including everything from home renovation to building Mars colonies. Education will be modeled after MMORPGs. Farms will literally become like Farmville. Every aspect of life, from charities to politics, will be gamified. Games are simply too strong a motivator to be ignored by economics and social forces.

The power of gamification is mighty, so we must make sure that it becomes a force for good. Indeed, gamification can be be the most significant way of unlocking human potential. Imagine if personal fulfillment is the most addictive activity in your life — that’s world-changing.

It’s already happening. In Food Force, an educational game published by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in 2005, players take on missions to distribute food in a famine-affected country and to help it to recover and become self-sufficient again. Games For Change (G4C) fosters social impact games in humanitarian and educational efforts. Jane McGonigal, who wrote her PhD thesis on games, is a huge champion of gaming for social good, and has written books on the subject (Reality Is Broken, SuperBetter) and is the Director of Games Research & Development at the Institute for the Future.

There’s still a long way to go, but it’s already clear that the possibilities are endless. I can’t wait.

In fact, I’m working on something to hasten the arrival of our gamified future, so stay tuned.

Reasons For Hope Under Trump

A few days after the November election, I wrote on Quora the following reason for why I am hopeful, even under the Trump administration. And today, on Inauguration Day, I still believe it’s true.

Should Donald Trump be trusted?

No, he cannot be trusted.

But that might be a good thing. I say this as a Clinton voter.

Here’s what I mean:

Trump can’t be trusted to be firm on any political position. He has claimed countless conflicting stances in the past, encompassing the entire political spectrum (for/against Iraq, for/against reproductive rights, etc.).

Having such an unpredictable President means that we, the American people, will feel compelled to stay vigilant in politics. We’ve already seen that this is a significant motivator for political engagement. Just take a look at the past couple of days — we’ve seen much more political engagement in the days following the election than ever before, especially among young people.

And that’s precisely why Trump’s untrustworthiness is a great gift for American citizens who commit to an active role in shaping their country — their efforts, whether liberal, conservative, or otherwise, will actually make an impact.

That’s right. You can be black, white, Hispanic, Asian, native, immigrant, LBGTQ, Muslim, Catholic, rich, or poor — and you can actually make an impact.

The downside, of course, is that if Americans let their collective guards down over the next 4 years, the result will be utterly unpredictable.

You see, Presidents never truly rule the United States.

The American people do. And it’s time we realize that.

In a way, President Trump may have been what the Founding Fathers intended.

(I will say that a lot of Trump’s past behavior is difficult to explain to kids. And my heart goes out to those of you that have personally faced bigotry in your lives both before and after the election. However, if public engagement since the election is any indication, I’m hopeful for a more active and informed American people.)

Small Talk

There’s a certain default template that typical (American) small talk follows: name, place of origin, college/university, occupation, drilling deeper. Even when I read Reddit or watch The Art of Manliness videos, the conversation topics are pretty standard. There’s a certain sense of comfort that comes with this template — both parties are familiar with these topics, and both can rattle off the answers “like a real human being” without too much mental strain. That may be why the template is so attractive and irresistible.

Here’s a fun strategy for turning this interaction on its head. Instead of launching into this template after asking for each others’ names, one might suggest to the other that no one should mention the typical items in the template — no talk of work, school, or origin. These topics are completely off-limits until later in the conversation. At this point, let the other party know that real creativity is needed to get this moving, and that the goal is to truly know each other better, rather than hear a set of standard forgettable facts. Suggest that they bring up things about themselves that are truly memorable, such as unique triumphs, substantial failures, and incredible comebacks. Ask them about what is surprising about them, and this could be a skill, an experience, or a little known fact. See if they can teach something about an unfamiliar topic. When a shared experience or interest comes up (again, unrelated to one of the template topics), revel in this discovery and help each other open up and share more.

This naturally brings up this possible problem: what if the other party does not wish to go along with it? The simplest way to rectify this issue is to leave gracefully. If they somehow still wish to continue this conversation, it’s a little harder (since you effectively took the default topics off the table) — but still doable. The venue and event is a great starting place, since that is a shared experience. Discuss similar events and your intentions to attend others like it. When a natural exit from the conversation is found, graciously thank the conversation partner and move on.

While it is important to have a goal for each conversation, it is equally important to remember that conversations must always have reciprocal value exchange. Hounding someone because you need a deal, a job, or some other urgent need is a poor way to execute a conversation. If something of value can be provided in return, then the other party will be more receptive to requests during a conversation. Your value could simply be the novel way that you approach and have conversations with strangers, which can be refreshing and entertaining. The best conversationalists add to a discussion only when the other party is receptive, and are patient and curious whenever the other party needs to have their say. I believe that striking the right balance and providing value is the way to attain goals in social situations.