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Another study compared surgeons who play video games to those who don't. Even after taking into account differences in age, years of medical training and the number of laparoscopic surgeries performed, researchers found an edge for gamer surgeons. "The single best predictor of their skills is how much they had played video games in the past and how much they played now," said Iowa State University psychologist Douglas Gentile. "Those were better predictors of surgical skills than years of training and number of surgeries performed," Gentile said. "So the first question you might ask your surgeon is how many of these [surgeries] have you done and the second question is, 'Are you a gamer?'"

ome children with dyslexia or other learning difficulties, like Hunter Gaudet, 16, of Somers, Conn., have found it far more comfortable to search and read online.

Some Web evangelists say children should be evaluated for their proficiency on the Internet just as they are tested on their print reading comprehension. Starting next year, some countries will participate in new international assessments of digital literacy, but the United States, for now, will not.

Some traditionalists warn that digital reading is the intellectual equivalent of empty calories. Often, they argue, writers on the Internet employ a cryptic argot that vexes teachers and parents. Zigzagging through a cornucopia of words, pictures, video and sounds, they say, distracts more than strengthens readers. And many youths spend most of their time on the Internet playing games or sending instant messages, activities that involve minimal reading at best.

Under the agreement, MySpace now allows parents to submit their child's e-mail address to prevent anyone from using that e-mail address to set up a profile (e-mail addresses are required in order to set up an account for either Facebook or MySpace, and people may search for "friends" by entering e-mail addresses). For anyone under 16, MySpace will automatically set the profile to "private," allowing only approved people to view the profile. There is now a closed "high school" section of the site set aside for users under 18.

Like Facebook, MySpace officials will also "obtain and constantly update a list of pornographic Web sites and regularly sever any links" between the sites. MySpace agreed to provide a way to report abuse on every page that contains content. The site's officials also prom­ised to respond to complaints of inappropriate content within 72 hours.

Bunce was arrested "on suspicion of possessing indecent images of children, downloading indecent images of children and incitement to distribute indecent images of children" — all before a single image of such had been found on his computers at home and at work. He quickly found himself unemployed and estranged from his family. But his wife stuck by him, and while his computer sat in police custody waiting to be examined, Bunce took action.

Bunce used the U.S. Freedom of Information Act and a catalog of Internet Protocol addresses to establish that his credit-card number had been used in Jakarta, Indonesia, to buy child pornography online at the same moment he used the card to pay the bill at a London restaurant.

Research is also beginning to show that just like traditional forms of bullying, cyberbullying can lead to anxiety, lower rates of self-esteem and higher rates of school absence, says Patti Agatston, a licensed professional counselor with the Prevention/Intervention Center, a student assistance program serving more than 100 schools in suburban Atlanta, Ga.