Computer Game's High Score Could Earn The Nobel Prize In Medicine
ScienceDaily (May 9, 2008)
Gamers have devoted countless years of collective brainpower to rescuing princesses or protecting the planet against alien
invasions. This week researchers at the University of Washington will try to harness those finely honed skills to make medical
discoveries, perhaps even finding a cure for HIV.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508122520.htm
A new game, named Foldit, turns protein folding into a competitive sport. Introductory levels teach the rules, which are the same
laws of physics by which protein strands curl and twist into three-dimensional shapes -- key for biological mysteries ranging from
Alzheimer's to vaccines.
After about 20 minutes of training, people feel like they're playing a video game but are actually mouse-clicking in the name of
medical science. The free program is at
http://fold.it/.
The game was developed by doctoral student Seth Cooper and postdoctoral researcher Adrien Treuille, both in computer science and
engineering, working with Zoran Popovic, a UW associate professor of computer science and engineering; David Baker, a UW professor
of biochemistry and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator; and David Salesin, a UW professor of computer science and
engineering. Professional game designers provided advice during the game's creation.
"We're hopefully going to change the way science is done, and who it's done by," said Popovic, who presented the project today at
the Games for Health meeting in Baltimore. "Our ultimate goal is to have ordinary people play the game and eventually be candidates
for winning the Nobel Prize."
