Gamers Can Save the Real World Too!

[Dandan]

Gamers pwn University of Washington scientists, solve decade-long simian AIDS protein conundrum​

No gamer's escaped the throes of adolescence without hearing the damning refrain, "Video games'll rot your brain." While scientific research into that claim has so far proved inconclusive, it turns out the preferred pastime of our digital era could potentially cure cancer, and even help prevent AIDS -- in monkeys. Utilizing crowdsourced results from the downloadable protein-manipulating "game" Foldit, scientists at the University of Washington were able to attain a successful model of the simian AIDS-causing Mason - Pfizer monkey virus retroviral protease. For over a decade, researchers have been arduously attempting to reconstruct the folded shape of M-PMV with the aid of the task-specific Rosetta software, but to no avail. Now, in what they're calling a possible first, gamers were able to do what scientific brains and algorithms could not, creating a sufficient model for molecular replacement -- all in just three weeks. Feel like dedicating your leisure hours to this worthwhile cause? Then be sure to hit up the source link below, and transform yourself from couch potato to couch crusader.

At first I thought it was the Folding@Home Project but this is completely different and still quite amazing.

 

[Ennui]

Similar to folding@home except that instead of distributed computing they have humans solve the protein puzzles visually instead of having the computer do computations on it. Our pattern recognition ability is still unparalleled by computer equivalents.

 

[BabyHeadCrab]

Until Skynet