And you thought it was a waste of time.

Cross-dressing rogue sent me this fantastic article: "Level-Up Life: Gaming Can Enhance Your Reality."

Gotta love this quote:

Sophisticated video games have had demonstrable effects on their players. For example, people who frequently play action games often outperform non-gamers on measures of perception and cognition. Other studies have found that intense video game practice improved players’ ability to carry out complex hand-eye coordination tasks and their contrast sensitivity.

When I mentally hit my keybinding of "\" to drop my totems when the going gets rough, and have invisible +++++ signs and throbbing-blue mana pools all over my mental life, I realize it's kind of a Walter Mitty-esque response to the stresses of real life. But those I work with and for should realize, if that tiny, harmless mental image of popping off a maelstrom or dropping a few windshear interrupts is the least of my quirkiness, then let me have my small moments. I know every time I have my blood pressure checked, it's excellent, and haven't had to climb any clock towers to date.

It's worth a read, and if you ever need scientific rationalization on why you should spend time in Azeoroth, all I can say is, "You're welcome."