Hello everyone (and happy 4th to the American folks here). I'm a reddit defector after five years. I'm in my early 30's, am working on my PhD, have two rescue dachshunds, and spend way too much time gaming.
What PhD are you pursuing? Any ideas for your dissertation? Good on you for rescuing your pups. Dogs are the best.
Education technology and instructional design. The dissertation is still up in the air but it'll definitely be focusing on video games as learning tools. I'd really like to focus it down to using non-player characters for teaching and evaluating soft skills in adult learners but I've got to get my advisor on board with it first.
Sounds interesting. I recall a little bit of research into video games and reaction time from my undergrad but can't recall all that much. Definitely an interesting field of study with a ton of potential. Best of luck to you. I miss academia!