Fold it a protein puzzle game for science

Fold It is a game that is different from others. It is also a research tool. A research tool powered by the public.

Unlike other science games this is not dependent on the predefined parameters of a known compound. You do not add sodium to water and get an explosion. You do not see an imaginary indicator change colour with an acid. There is no rag doll physics engine. This is different.

Fold it uses a brute force approach to solving the structure of a protein. If it were a pure research tool this would tie up one or more super computers for years if not decades. This would involve creating simulations of a protein time and time again with slight deviations. Each successive failure would guide the next sequence of iterations. Any problems would require the program be redesigned, recompiled and possibly entirely rebooted. Over time a reliable model for one protein would be produced. It is a long and labour intensive approach.

The way to get around this is exactly what Fold It does. They distribute the job to the public. They have made the process of figuring out what the problem is and how to solve it a game that is ideally suited to humans and our inquisitive mind. This would be pointless if the game was just problem solving as it would only attract those who were already going to be researching proteins which is a very small population. Fortunately it is not so.

This is because the human brain is very good at identifying patterns and reasoning in 3D space. Something a computer program struggles with. It is the organic reasoning mind that makes using humans so much more effective but it is also this human mind that makes people want to work towards the researchers objectives.

By making this a game, and a competitive game at that, the pool of candidates has expanded. This has also increased the investment and reward from succeeding for those playing. By creating both a reward which you see in the form of colour sprays and points you are enticed to play more. By having you play in a ladder you are enticed to play more and do better. The addition of a social element than creates the social status of us versus them and a desire to make your team the top candidate.

This benefits the scientists and is reasonably ethical. It uses the data derived from this competition to create better algorithms. This algorithms become more apt at recognising patterns and deciphering the 3D shape of proteins. This improves the ways in which artificial proteins, undescribed pathogenic markers or even artificial proteins can be analysed.

Relevant links:

The Fold It website
https://fold.it/portal/