Tuesday Review; Outliers

Editors Note; I think that as of now every Tuesday i will be reviewing something new, whether it’s a book, movie, CD or even video game.

Everyone in school wants to be somebody; this is of course the end goal, but what separates those who are good from those who are great? Malcom Gladwell answers this question in his third major book; Outliers.

The book starts off with Malcom talking about the greatest Canadian pastime; hockey, specifically minor league hockey. According to Gladwell, the best hockey players are born in the first few months of the calendar year; January and February to be specific. The reason for this is because these players have an extra advantage when it comes to playing for teams. Since they are the oldest of their year group, they can be drafted to play on teams faster than the players born later in the year. As a result, these players develop faster and learn better skills which allow them to succeed. Take Wayne Gretzky as an example (born Jan 26 1961). As the year 1978 began, Wayne was already eligible to play for the WHA and as a result got traded to the Oilers where he began his career.  There could have just as easily been a player of equal caliber who was born in march who was not eligible to play for the WHA and a result never made it big. These types of examples demonstrate how success is not always the result of inherent ability, but sometimes just being born on the right day.

The idea of 10,000 hours is also something that appears in the early chapters of outliers and addresses the age-old idea of practice.  To be truly great at something you need to invest at least ten thousand hours into it before it becomes main-stream. The Beatles played in Hamburg for hours on end for countless summers where they honed their skills as performers. Bill Gates put hours into programming at his alma mater before computers even became mainstream. Even great Halo players logged ten thousand hours over the course of the last 3 games.  The point is that practice makes perfect, this is something our parents and teachers both preached, but to truly be perfect you need to dedicate yourself to something for at least ten thousand hours.

Finally, Gladwell talks about why Asian children are so good at math compared to their western neighbors. Growing up on rice paddies, most children had to deal with meticulous work and attention to detail which translated well to the classroom where they would observe math problems in a different way. However this is just half of the equation (pun intended) because the Chinese culture also views numbers in a different way than we do; simplified. Count to 50 in English and then in Chinese and observe the difference; our way is all jumbled, we say thirteen when they say ten-add-three. Processing numbers and formulas becomes easier when you view them in such a simple way.

Of course I do not do the work of Malcom Gladwell justice by summarizing it in 3 short paragraphs which is why I recommend you to go out and buy this books to find out what makes some people great while others just stay good.

5 Ways to Save Money On Gaming

During tough economic times, it’s more important than ever to save money where possible. A lot of students don’t want to give us their favorite pastime; gaming. Here are 5 ways to ensure you get the best gaming experience while keeping your wallet heavy.

1.       Rent shorter game while investing in others

This really is a common sense move. New releases such as Prince Of Persia and Mirror’s Edge are both under 40 hours of gameplay and can easily be finished in a weekend. Shelling out $70 for games like this isn’t the wisest use of money. Instead, invest in games with expansive stories like Fallout 3 or good multi-player modes like Left 4 Dead.

2.       Grab sports games as the season wears down

The Superbowl is only 40 days away and marks the end of the NFL season, what better time to buy that Madden 2009 you’ve had your eye on?  As the season wears on, gamers find less to enjoy in their sports games; you can only play through so many seasons until you grow tired. These casual gamers will trade in their games in hopes of getting an upgrade which leaves the door wide open for us to scoop in and benefit from the lowered price. If you are a hardcore sports fan then this may not seem like a good option, but if you have the patience for it then it could save you at least $20.

3.       Rediscover your GBA

With everyone praising the DS and games like Chrono Trigger and Advanced Wars, remember you still have a viable piece of equipment stashed away somewhere. The Gameboy Advance is a portable console half the size of the DS and in its prime it had some great titles out for it which you may have forgotten about. Both Golden Sun games deserve to be checked out if you love the handheld RPG market and the Advance Wars and Fire Emblem franchises both made their mark on the console. Any of these games can be picked up from your local EB games at ridiculously cheap prices and provide days of entertainment in the palm of your hand. Don’t have your GBA? Check out pawn shops for it as well as some games. Remember; it doesn’t have to be pretty, it just has to be fun.

4.       Swap Games

With so many games sharing release dates, arrange or you and your friends to get separate games and then swap when you are both tired of your own. Tired of Saints Row 2? Why not swap it for a few weeks with your friend who just finished Fable 2? This process gives you a 2 for 1 deal and lets you play games you would’ve normally passed over.

5.       Trade It In

Are you ever going to replay Bioshock and get the other 2 endings or play Assassins Creed to collect every single flag? Chances are you won’t, so trade these games in and get something new. Keep games with a decent story and good multi-player (GTA 4) but you need to free up some shelf space to make room for new arrivals. Look out for trade 3 get 1 free deals that let you grab a new game when it comes out. Just make sure it’s a game you would want to play.