Simply Snake Sprites and Sounds: Snake Detection Theory in Video Games

Snake Detection Theory states that there is an innate evolutionary advantage to respond to snake stimuli stronger and faster than non-snake stimuli. This theory has been supported by studies measuring brain activity in infants looking at images of snakes (Bertels et al., 2020), reactions in wild monkeys and marmosets (Wombolt & Caine, 2016; Isbell & Etings, 2017; Van Strien et al, 2016; Dinh et al., 2021), and in peripheral attention tasks in adults (Kawai & He, 2016; Kawai & Qui, 2020; Gallup & Meyers, 2021). Also, over 53% of UK citizens report anxiety around snakes, and it is one of the most common animal-specific phobias (Davey, 1994). The current study uses a video game to explore the psychological and physiological responses when interacting with a snake and non-snake “boss”. Conditions are counterbalanced, and heart rate variability, blood pressure, reaction time, and breadth of attention are measured. This study will provide insight into whether a physiological response to snake stimuli is evident in video-gaming, and whether it is independent of self-reported emotions. Such research provides a deeper understanding of the biomechanics and emotions associated with snakes, which have broad ranging applications from gaming design to research on phobias

Virtual hallucinations: projects in VJing, virtual reality and cyberculture

This paper discusses a variety of the author’s artistic projects exploring altered states of consciousness and computer art. First, the paper will provide a brief overview of previous creative works, which include compositions of electroacoustic music, interactive visualisations, and visual music films. These previous works use the concept of altered states of consciousness as a compositional principle, as explored in the author’s book Inner Sound: Altered States of Consciousness in Electronic Music and Audio-Visual Media (OUP 2018). Following this, a variety of the author’s recent creative work produced from 2016–2019 will be discussed. These works include: a series of paintings that incorporate computer graphics animations when viewed in augmented reality; VJ performances constructed using direct animation on 8mm film, computer graphics animations generated from code and audio-reactive effects; and Cyberdream VR, a virtual reality experience. These interrelated projects continue to develop the author’s artistic investigations into altered states, while also referencing work such as demo scene videos; cyberdelic imagery of the type seen on fliers from the 1990s rave-era; and the recent Internet-borne subculture vaporwave, which recontextualises the aesthetics of 1980s and 1990s ambient corporate music and utopian computer graphics to construct surrealistic dystopias

Entropy 2019 Best Paper Award

On behalf of the Editor-in-Chief, Prof [...]</jats:p

Entropy 2019 Best Paper Award

On behalf of the Editor-in-Chief, Prof [...

Acknowledgment to the Reviewers of Entropy in 2022

High-quality academic publishing is built on rigorous peer review [...

Entropy 2021 Best Paper Award

On behalf of the Editor-in-Chief, Prof [...

Acknowledgment to Reviewers of Entropy in 2021

Rigorous peer-reviews are the basis of high-quality academic publishing [...

Acknowledgment to Reviewers of Entropy in 2020

Peer review is the driving force of journal development, and reviewers are gatekeepers who ensure that Entropy maintains its standards for the high quality of its published papers [...

Acknowledgment to the Reviewers of <i>Entropy</i> in 2022

High-quality academic publishing is built on rigorous peer review [...