Another study shows that gaming improves vision considerably

A second research study has found that video games can improve vision -- pretty much the exact opposite of what mom always said about all that sitting too close to the TV.

Two years ago, a study discussed in Science Daily found that playing shooter-type games increased overall visual ability by about 20 percent, "in essence improving your bottom line on a standard eye chart."

Now new research reiterates those findings while also suggesting how the visual improvement might work. Specifically, shooter-style games provide help in training the eye in something called "contrast sensitivity," defined as "the ability to notice tiny changes in shades of grey against a uniform background... critical to everyday activities such as night driving and reading."

The results are particularly surprising, say scientists, because you're not supposed to be able to improve your contrast sensitivity with training, much like you can't reduce the prescription of your glasses by reading in a smaller font size. The findings instead suggest that rather than just being an optical phenomenon that takes place in the eye, the brain plays a more active role in detecting these contrast changes, and that with training you can indeed improve this aspect of your vision.

What's even better is that all you have to do to improve it is play action games: Most regular players of shooters will see improvement of about 50 percent(!) in contrast sensitivity after 50 hours of playing games like Call of Duty, and that effect will persist for months or even years after your most recent gaming session.

All of which begs the question: Can I now deduct the cost of Gears of War 2 as a medical expense?