simulation and imitation

A phrase that often slips (too easily) off my tongue during a class session is "in the real world" (i.e., "someplace other than this classroom").  The classroom is both simulation and imitation.  The hours of labor arbitrary, the intellectual groups randomly assembled.  A space for play, technology, and introspection.  If simulation means imitation without human (or thing) presence, the classroom can do that too.

The video is of a fictional World Cup match between St. Kitts and Mexico on FIFA soccer.  Vacillating between innovation and pure mimesis, this video game does a phenomenal job of recreating offensive strategies, defensive attacks, and multiple trajectories of the ball.  The Scottish accent of the announcer brings the viewer right to the edge of "the real world," arousing a sense of competitive excitement.

Which is more enjoyable to watch: the video simulation or a video recording of a match between humans?  Both offer their own set of pleasures.  But I suggest that the simulated version might work better in a jock classroom.  Unlike human players, these avatars never get tired and they ALWAYS know the right place on the field to occupy when they are without the ball.  Watch the Lilliputian players from Mexico from 2:45-3:10: stacking one beautiful passing triangle on another as they go up the field.  Barcelona's Ineista and Xavi might come close to this kind of brilliance, but they will never surpass it.  An archetype and prototype extracted from concrete moments of play.  How better to describe inductive reasoning and information coagulation in the classroom?