Real-Life Badge Unlocks?

[ThaOGDreamWeaver]

Just wanted to share something I ran across.

 

If, while studying as an undergrad at MIT, you complete courses in Sailing, Pistol Shooting (Air or Rifle), Archery and Fencing...

...you will unlock an official, genuine, MIT Pirate Certificate.

 

This is real, not an April 1st special, and designed to promote the range of Phys Ed options at MIT.

Boston also has a fine history of the trade from John Quelch through to Pedro Gilbert (100 years after the end of the Golden Age of Piracy).

 

As their site notes:

Quote

 

The MIT Pirate Certificate is for entertainment purposes only, and does not give the recipient license to engage in piracy or any pirate activities.
 

 

 

More of this, please: I don't think gamification works for everything, but people do respond well to fun small rewards.

What's the best examples you've run into?

Edited June 16 by ThaOGDreamWeaver

[Glacier Peak]

Uh.. the military. They give lots of nifty badges.

[Octogoat]

Girl scouts?

[Techwright]

On 6/16/2025 at 7:35 AM, ThaOGDreamWeaver said:

Just wanted to share something I ran across.

 

If, while studying as an undergrad at MIT, you complete courses in Sailing, Pistol Shooting (Air or Rifle), Archery and Fencing...

...you will unlock an official, genuine, MIT Pirate Certificate.

 

This is real, not an April 1st special, and designed to promote the range of Phys Ed options at MIT.

 

More of this, please: I don't think gamification works for everything, but people do respond well to fun small rewards.

What's the best examples you've run into?

 

Pistols and Archery don't really sound like Phys Ed stuff (this from a former camp archery instructor), that is, unless you're doing some sort of running action with them.   Most archery ranges uses a 45 lbs draw as their maximum, paired with close targets, which I raised an eyebrow at when I was investigating archery ranges in my area at which to practice.  The camp I instructed at taught 9 and 10 year olds using 45 lbs bows.  Adults who could handle them were offered 60 lbs bows, which is what we two instructors used.  Admittedly, I had some great biceps after 10 weeks of summer, but I was pulling that string 4 hours a day 6 days a week.  I don't really see that action as Phys Ed.  Now if we had a safe training possible in a "run and gun" style, that might be Phys Ed, likewise a biathlon for guns.  (Now if the course was offering "Medieval archery", I might see that as Phys Ed, as the longbow archers of that era frequently had bows of 180 lbs draw weight in order to penetrate armor, and it was their daily job to train.  That...is a workout.)

 

Gamification:  Best I can think of may never see the light of day, sadly.  I've a buddy who is a genius coder and health nut, and came very close to releasing an excellent fitness website that did a great job of aiding people wanting to improve their health.  He enlisted me for insights as I'm exactly the kind of person the site would target, and I pitched the idea of taking a page from gaming and giving multiple rewards in the fitness program:  Long term goal rewards (I'd probably compare this to security levels in COH), but also a variety of smaller rewards for meeting short-term goals.  The idea was to get the dopamine pumping to keep the more challenged "in the game" during spots that were harder to hit the long-term goals.   Sadly, the project has been tabled indefinitely, as he finishes a couple of other concepts and brings them to market, including a new, affordable concept in personal alert buttons, those "help me, I've fallen and I can't get up" things.  This one's got some concepts that would make it useful to healthy people leading active lifestyles as well.  Sadly, the chance to bring this to market, disrupted the fitness program design.