Definitions
- Protein- organic compounds that are made of large molecules composed of long chains of amino acids
- Amino Acids- an organic compound containing both a carboxyl and an amino group
Summary
- Scientist are recruiting professional gamers to learn about the structures of proteins using a new game. Seth Cooper from the University of Washington in Seattle thought of the idea to bring in the people from the net to help solve how proteins fold amino chains to help them become the "building blocks of life". In this new game "Foldit" each player must twist, and manipulate proteins to create 3D structures that the protein is able to maintain. Right now 57,000 players and counting are playing "Foldit", and some top scorers are able to outdo modern computer algorithms that do the same thing. Some other features that have made this game popular are its competition, team gameplay, and its addictiveness, and because of its popularity, the University of Washington is even creating a new center for game science. As Cooper says, "[People say that] computer games are trivial;... [but this] shows you can actually use computer games to solve really hard problems."
Discussion
- One of the reasons I chose this article was that I personally like computer games, and the other reason was that I was curious about how a video game could be used by scientists to help them find new discoveries. This article also really shows how new knowledge in science can be discovered in all sorts of ways, even in gaming, the thing that most parents hate. Also, with the blend of thousands of minds working on one thing, all of the creative minds of a society can contribute greatly to this study and provide ideas that no one else had thought of before. However, this process of experiments has its own downsides. For example, it would be hard to tell whether or not what a person does in the game would actually benefit the scientists. How would they tell if someone made a breakthrough, or if that person cheated. Although this is a fun new method for scientific studies, there are plenty of problems that can result from it.
Questions
- Could this method of exploring science be improved upon so it could be much more effective?
- What other methods could scientist use to solve scientific puzzles?
Citations
- "Computer game unlocks protein puzzle." United Press International 5 Aug. 2010:
n. pag. Science Online. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
Picture
- http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/notrocketscience/files/2010/08/Foldit.jpg
This topic is really intriguing. It is really interesting on how the lure of gaming and puzzle solving led many people to work on sorting amino acids in a protein. Your discussion is very clear and easy to understand, however, instead of talking about how the game is popular, talk about some features that exist in the game. Your discussion is also very comprehendible and addresses valid issues that might arise. However, I don't understand how a person could cheat on the game. They cannot use software as you stated, the highest scorers are better than modern algorithms on computers.
ReplyDeleteOverall, you have a very clear explanation of a new method of exploring science.