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''Everything Bad Is Good for You: How Today's Popular Culture Is Actually Making Us Smarter'' is a non-fiction book written by Steven Johnson. Published in 2005, it is based upon Johnson's theory that popular culture – in particular television programs and video games – has grown more complex and demanding over time and is making society as a whole more intelligent. The book's claims, especially related to the proposed benefits of television, drew media attention. It received mixed critical reviews. Johnson states that the goal of his book is to persuade readers "that popular culture has, on average, grown more complex and intellectually challenging over the past thirty years." ==Key concepts== Johnson challenges the precept that pop culture has deteriorated. He derives the term ''Sleeper Curve'' from the Woody Allen film ''Sleeper'', where "scientists from 2173 are astounded that twentieth-century society failed to grasp the nutritional merits of cream pies and hot fudge".〔 He uses this to argue against contemporary perception of the deteriorating standards of pop culture, although Johnson is quick to point out that by no means does the Sleeper Curve imply that popular culture has become superior to traditional culture.〔 Johnson defends the value of modern pop culture. He argues that the appeal of video games is not through their (possibly violent or sexual) content, but rather through the fact that the "structure" of the video games uniquely invites exploration and stimulates the reward centers of the brain.〔 He asserts that television is a "brilliant medium" for determining how skilled people are at understanding interpersonal connections, or their Autism Quotient (the higher a person's emotional intelligence, the lower their "AQ"),〔 and that reality shows in particular realistically display the complexity of "social network maps" in human relations, where a group of people have complex and intertwined engagement.〔 Earlier television, Johnson says, simplified narrative and human relationships, while modern trends not only in reality shows but in "multiple threading" in scripted programs such as ''The Sopranos'' improve the audience's cognitive skills.〔 He suggests too that modern television and films have reduced the number of "flashing arrows", narrative clues to help the audience understand the plot, and require audiences to do more cognitive work paying attention to background detail and information if they wish to follow what they are viewing.〔 Johnson acknowledges that although the video game industry is growing, the literature on the subject is limited at best. Johnson offers several sources for information on ludology; (Ludology.org ) and (seriousgames.org ) as well as the books ''Got Game'' by John Beck and Mitchell Wade and ''The Play Ethic'' by Pat Kane.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Everything Bad Is Good for You」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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