Topic: Nintendo Gives Brain Age to a Hundred Americans

[WindyMan]

The catch?  They had to be seniors that didn't act their age.

Nintendo Recognizes 100 'Ageless Americans'    

'Ageless Award' Honorees Are Inspirationally Youthful, Receive Nintendo DS   and Brain Age to Keep Minds Active    

REDMOND, Wash., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Nintendo is honoring 100   individuals, whose ages range from 54 to 104, from around the country who   personify the term "ageless."  They run marathons and tame lions.  They are   stuntmen and NASCAR racers.  They don't let their chronological age define   who they are, and they set a positive role model for people of all ages.   These are qualities Nintendo has fostered with its wildly popular Nintendo   DS™ title Brain Age™: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day, which offers   users a series of challenging puzzles to keep their minds active.  The 100   recipients are living demonstrations of how a youthful mindset can keep a   person truly "ageless."  Each of the honorees has received a Nintendo DS   Lite portable video game system and a copy of Brain Age.    

"These honorees represent the kind of people we all want to grow up to be,"   says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of   marketing and corporate communications.  "They refuse to act their age.   They think young, and therefore they act young.  Brain Age is one more tool   in their anti-aging arsenal."    

A 2006 survey by the Entertainment Software Association revealed that 25   percent of all gamers are age 55 and older.  Brain Age has been a big hit   with older, active adults, who use it daily to help keep their minds sharp   with tests of memory, mathematics, reading and counting.    

"The award is a reminder to people of all generations that age is just a   number," says award recipient Cathi Watson, a 73-year-old radio show host   and producer.  "Keeping your body and mind fit and active are the keys to   remaining young at heart."    

Nintendo went as far as including the names of all 100 people that received this free gift, including where they live and what they do for a living.  The list is too large to bother posting into this news story (and you probably don't want to read it, anyway), but for the curious, you can enter the talkback thread to see it in all of its glory.

[WindyMan]

And heeeeeere's the rest of the press release.

Quote
To help Nintendo find 100 people in the United States who personify the ideals of Brain Age, the Grandparent Marketing Group conducted a nationwide search and identified the following honorees.

 Alabama
 Ray M., 69, of Decatur: Motorcycle drag racer and city councilman

 Alaska
 Don H., 66, of Haines: Snowmobile racer

 Arizona:
 Charlie H., 90, of Payson: Cowboy
 Lute O., 72, of Tucson: America's oldest college basketball coach

 Arkansas
 Oakland D., 78, of Fort Smith: Runner and triathlete

 California
 Bob B., 75, of Palm Desert: World champion body surfer
 Alan C., 74, of Altadena: Master puppeteer and owner of America's largest puppet collection
 Jack C., 82, of Lakeside: World-famous bongo and conga player
 Bill B., 66, of Oakland: Three-time national and world yo-yo champion
 Leroy G., 89, of Carlsbad: Surfer and surfing photographer
 Bob H., 73, of Fontana: Champion mountain bike rider
 Joyce H., 72, of Atherton: Director of the Living Strong, Living Well program
 Rueben M., 66, of Santa Ana: One of the largest commercial sellers of Spanish-language books
 Lagrand N., 99, of Hemet: Nemean Games competitor
 Donald P., 90, of Mountain View: Champion jumper
 Ora R., 87, of Sacramento: Served as a mentor to more than 3,000 children
 Raleigh R., 88, of San Jose: World War II POW, Blue Angel
 Terry R., 90, of Los Angeles: Physical trainer since 1935
 Gordy S., 88, of El Cajon: Unstoppable bicyclist
 Barry S., 59, of Citrus Heights: Adult Baseball League champion

 Connecticut
 George B., 72, of Ridgefield: Oldest person ever to swim the English Channel
 Donald M., 90, of New Haven: Competitive swimmer and teacher of ballroom dancing
 Jose S., 80, of Norwich: Stonemason who built or repaired thousands of miles of stone walls in New England

 Florida
 Donald A., 68, of St. Petersburg: Health and wellness publisher and duathlete
 George B., 91, of Winter Haven: Oldest barefoot water skier
 Lucille B., 93, of Babson Park: Oldest female waterskiing champion
 Cav C., 71, of Fort Lauderdale: Swimming champion
 Iris D., 62, of Cocoa: Champion bodybuilder
 Dorothy G., 98, of Jensen Beach: America's oldest mayor
 Al O., 70, of Fort Meyers Beach: Four-time gold Olympics discus champ, painter
 Edward R., 98, of Apollo Beach: Took up golf at 65, now plays every day
 James S., 84, of Lady Lake: Three-sport Golden Age Games medalist
 Helen W., 69, of Newberry: Basketball champion and coach

 Hawaii
 Jack S., 61, of Honolulu: Oldest pilot in U.S. military

 Illinois
 Cathi W., 73, of Schaumburg: Producer and host of eight weekly radio shows

 Iowa
 Hank M., 65, of Muscatine: Diving civil engineer

 Kansas
 Norvin A., 80, of Saint Francis: Oldest police officer in Kansas
 Waldo M., 104, of Quinter: Beekeeper and author
 George M., 68, of Emporia: Tennis coach at Emporia State University
 Shirley R., 85, of Mission: Founded and runs the American Stroke Foundation

 Kentucky
 Red C., 90, of Somerset: Master mechanic
 Christine C., 83, of Louisville: Worked for the state of Kentucky since 1958

 Louisiana
 Charles M., 91, of Baton Rouge: Champion weightlifter

 Maine
 Jim M., 68, of Bangor: Oldest car crash stuntman in America

 Maryland
 Joseph F., 71, of Frederick: Food bank driver who has transported more than 2 million pounds of surplus food
 Douglas H., 63, of Chevy Chase: Six-time winner of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament
 Charles M., 87, of Bethesda: Tuskegee Airman, highest three-war fighter mission total

 Massachusetts
 Curtis H., 84, of Boston: 12 gold medals, National Veterans Wheelchairs Games
 Jerry Y., 61, of Chestnut Hill: America's longest-serving hockey coach

 Michigan
 Paul B., 82, of Gaines: Water skiing legend
 Lois Kivi N., 82, of Huntington Woods: World record swimmer
 Nancy N., 63, of Grand Blanc: Mountain climber, motivational speaker
 Harry S., 82, of Bloomfield Township: One of the original Tuskegee Airmen

 Minnesota
 Scott B., 55, of Bemidji: Oldest Olympian
 Ardell L., 71, of Caledonia: First heart and kidney recipient to sail solo around the world
 Jerome S., 97, of Minneapolis: Avid roller skater

 Mississippi
 Helen B., 86, of Ripley: High jumper and javelin thrower

 Nebraska
 Sarah G., 97, of Lincoln: Assistant sergeant-at-arms, Nebraska State Legislature
 June H., 63, of Arcadia: Rodeo barrel racer

 New Hampshire
 Arnold G., 69, of Ashland: Restores vintage wooden bridges and builds new ones

 New Jersey
 Charlie C., 92, of Whippany: New Jersey's oldest firefighter
 Barbara J., 74, of Princeton: Champion rower
 Paul K., 76, of Far Hills: Relay swimmer, marathon runner

 New Mexico
 Mary M., 88, of Roy: Deputy municipal clerk
 Lynn R., 82, of Quemado: Archery champion

 New York
 Rubin G., 54, of Staten Island: Professional racquetball player
 Wilson G., 87, of Lancaster: Inventor of the first successful implantable pacemaker
 Herman G., 89, of Great Neck: Deep-sea diver and underwater photographer
 Reggie J., 80, of Bellmore: Country's oldest lifeguard
 Diana K., 65, of New York: Artist, Holocaust survivor
 Betty P., 75, of Penfield: Olympic coach, earned Ph.D. at 74
 George S., 78, of Brooklyn: One of the oldest working magicians in the country
 Warren S., 79, of New York: founded Legal Services for Children
 Hoy W., 90, of New York: New York City's oldest bartender

 North Carolina
 Margaret H., 83, of Concord: Oldest person to have completed a marathon on each of the seven continents
 Domenick I., 80, of Jacksonville: Has run 54 marathons
 Morgan, S., 65, of Conover: Oldest NASCAR driver

 Ohio
 August B., 90, of Maple Heights: Oldest football coach in Ohio history
 George K., 94, of Gahanna: One of the oldest practicing therapists in the country
 Jan L., 72, of Findlay: Champion unicycle rider
 Bonnie R., 80, of Mansfield: Oldest woman steelworker

 Oklahoma
 Lena H., 74, of Lawton: Spent six months in Iraq with Army Exchange Post
 Ken M., 84, of Ponca City: Music store owner

 Oregon
 Maude B., 94, of Portland: Champion bowler
 Mary B., 84, of Grants Pass: Newsroom librarian, Grants Pass Daily Courier
 Caye I., 83, of Jacksonville: Two-medal winner in tennis at Senior Games
 Daniele P., 84, of Lincoln City: Oldest working chef on the West Coast
 Del W., 73, of Eagle Point: Competes in world-class poker tournaments

 Pennsylvania
 Karl S., 69, of Port Matilda: 17-time U.S. national glider champion

 Texas
 Margaret C., 73, of San Antonio: Nationally ranked tennis player
 Betty P., 52, of North Richland Hills: One of the world's oldest female body builders
 Lillian R., 90, of Dallas: Senior Games gold medalist in two sports
 Katherine S., 66, of Dallas: Basketball coach and player, composer
 Guy S., 85, of Round Rock: Multi-sport athlete

 Utah
 Ronny A., 73, of Washington: Oldest skydiver in Utah
 John W., 82, of Salt Lake City: Triathlete

 Virginia
 Emily K., 75, of Richmond: Long-distance hiker and cyclist

 Washington
 Madonna B., 76, of Spokane: Oldest woman to ever finish an Ironman
 Kelly N., 79, of East Wenatchee: Champion bodybuilder

 Wisconsin
 Wilbert B., 88, of Aniwa: World's oldest lion tamer

 

[Ian Sane]

So if these people already make an effort to remain youthful and thus have a younger mind why do they need a free copy of Brain Age?  Wouldn't it make more sense to give free copies to really stupid people in need of Brain Age?

[WindyMan]

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
So if these people already make an effort to remain youthful and thus have a younger mind why do they need a free copy of Brain Age?  Wouldn't it make more sense to give free copies to really stupid people in need of Brain Age?

Yes.

[IceCold]

Quote
Originally posted by: WindyMan

Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
So if these people already make an effort to remain youthful and thus have a younger mind why do they need a free copy of Brain Age?  Wouldn't it make more sense to give free copies to really stupid people in need of Brain Age?

Yes.

Oh daamn.. the Director is getting political.

[that Baby guy]

*sigh*

Disregarding what is above, Nintendo has to actually do something different to let people know about BA.  No one is going to know about this outside of the gaming community and the immediate family and friends of these random 100 people.  They have to get the game to a place where everyone can enjoy it for a try.  A place like a supermarket or a pharmacy, maybe a bank as people wait in a queue.  I think that could break a real difference through to non-gamers, not just the ones who are related to people like us, but to random ones.  People who don't "do" computers or touch fancy phones.  Other people, too.  The ones who are "too busy" for games, but know the ins and outs of their cell phones.  Right know, Nintendo doesn't reach these people, but if they could, that is what would make the real difference.  

[wandering]

Quote
They have to get the game to a place where everyone can enjoy it for a try.

Starbucks.

[that Baby guy]

^That is a possibility,  isn't Starbucks based in Seattle?

[ShyGuy]

Reporting Windy to the NWR goons for being political.

[vudu]

Quote
Originally posted by: thatguy
Nintendo has to actually do something different to let people know about BA.  No one is going to know about this outside of the gaming community and the immediate family and friends of these random 100 people.

I disagree; look at the jobs of the people.

Quote
Cathi W., 73, of Schaumburg: Producer and host of eight weekly radio shows

Cathi W. has the potential to introduce the game to thousands of people in Illinois on any one of her eight weekly radio shows.

Many of the others are also people who are in the public eye, even if just a little bit more than average Joes.  Going down the list we have several professional/record-holding sports players (Yo-Yos count as a sport, right?), coaches, mentors, business owners, etc.  All of these people have the potential to get the word out to a large number of people.

[that Baby guy]

"The word" isn't what is needed.  They need to let people experience BA to get them to recognize it.  Otherwise, to everyone listening, it just seems like a game.  No even gets the opportunity, aside from people actually close to these people, to experience Brain Age.  The difference is this:  If I am joe Schmuck, driving my car, and I hear someone on the radio talking about Brain Age, I'm just gonna think, "Hey, that sounds neat.  I'll have to try that sometime."  If I am joe Schmuck, bored, waiting for my prescription, or perhaps, in a doctor's or dentist's lobby, waiting for my appointment, and there is a DS there, set-up not to be stolen, but also so you can sit down w/ it and play, I am going to think "Hey! This is neat.  I'll have to show this to Jane."  Then, when I get home, I tell Jane, she thinks it sounds intriguing from someone firsthand talking about it, and the two of us go and get a DS and Brain Age.

What is the difference?  Hearing about something from someone you don't even know has much less of an effect from trying something out.  Jane reacted positively because joe didn't have one, but really cared to show something interesting to his wife.  There is a big difference between personal and impersonal  communication, and I'm sorry, but I wouldn't listen to someone over the radio about anything that I would have to buy, unless I was already considering buying it.  Neither would joe.  Nintendo's philosophy has been "Playing is Believing" as of late, right?  They need to give the people something to believe in then, because the only place I see around that it is possible to play at is my house, my parent's house, and the local EB.